This blog post is what I sent, via e-mail, to relatives after receiving the previously-mentioned journal kept by my maternal grandmother. I have italicized the text.
A few of you know about this but I wanted to share with all. A journal, kept in a notebook by Gram, has been sent to me by my Mom, via Doodle Mama, via Uncle Buddy. The entries begin on Jun 17, 1947, end Aug 12, 1947, and detail her return to Scotland (she left in 1925 ... more than 20 years earlier) to visit when my Mom was a wee girl. I cannot find the words to accurately describe how I feel when I read her writing and what she was thinking about, where she was, what she did, etc. Initial thoughts and observations, some probably "meaningless" to anyone except me:
1. Her writing reminds me of mine; somewhat challenging to read. Of course the ink has faded somewhat over the past 60+ years.
2. She loved the United States, frequently referring to it as "good old" or similar.
3. On July 2, mid-sentence, she stopped using blue ink and began using black. Her penmanship seemed to slightly change as well.
4. On July 4th she visited "the old homestead". Her entry reminds me of a sentence I read in a book called The Highland Clans;"Chaneil nith an seo man a bha e" (there is nothing here now as it was).
5. There were places/sites she wanted to see, and she did a lot of walking around and exploring in addition. I did the same during my visits.
6. She was on a train, with brother Dave, and saw two soldiers home on leave from India. They were headed to Motherwell; during my Dec 2009/Jan 2010 trip I spent a lot of time at the Motherwell train station. It holds a special place in my heart.
7. She did not mince words and wrote down some of the negative experiences, as well. Hard beds, bad food, paying 2 shillings for a magazine that turned out to be almost 1 year old ("was I mad").
8. On Jun 20, 1947 the first sentence is a birthday greeting to my Mother.
Anywho, I shall end with that entry. If anyone cares, I'll share more as I continue to read it.
