A joyful afternoon with my neighbours

Since August I’ve been doing media interviews, bookclubs and presentations to get the word out about my book, The Golden Daughter. Today’s presentation was close to my heart, and just down the road from my home. I spoke to my peeps… the St. Margaret’s Bay Seniors Association in Nova Scotia.

The audience, 83 men and women, all roughly my age, although there were some fresh, younger faces, listened to my story attentively. You could have heard the proverbial pin drop in the Seabright Legion Hall.

With Cindy Skerry, who introduced me and who actually knew my mother.

The introduction I got from the association's Cindy Skerry really touched my heart. Cindy actually worked in the seniors’ residence where mama lived for a few years. She knew my mother and was able to tell some stories about her when she introduced me. With a few words, Cindy brought mama back to life for me.

The seniors’ association ‘got’ mama, and ‘got’ my story, because we were the same generation and many had similar experiences. Many heads nodded as I spoke about stressful mother-daughter relationships, intergenerational trauma, and parents keeping secrets from their children.

Having fun hearing stories as I signed copies of The Golden Daughter.

Later people came up to me and shared their stories. Some were similar to mine, other different but equally interesting. With each person, I encouraged them to write their story, perhaps for publication, perhaps for themselves, perhaps for their children and grandchildren. Stories are how we learn. Stories make us human. Stories teach us to be, and how to do better.