This Thanksgiving we decided to participate in the spirit of the National Day of Listening. My cousin, Marjorie, and I sat down with our mothers, Janet Filing and Barbara Almstead, to ask them about their experiences growing up.
We came up with a few questions, but it was most interesting to hear where the conversation led Mom and Barb as they remembered their parents, Philip and Sophia Filing.
Although some of the stories we heard, we knew, there were others that were new to us and even to Jan and Barb. In the process, I think we learned a lot not only about the history of our family, but also about the relational dynamics that made our mothers who they are.
Listen to Barb and Jan talk about Phil and Soph here.
Below are pictures of Phil and Soph (left) and Aunt Ro, Phil’s sister, with Phil and Soph (right).
I just listened to all of this and I am so grateful to you for how you are and who you are. I have always learned from you and I continue to. This was important to do. I so wish I had the voices of my/our ancestors to tap into and to hear. I learned a lot too. I want my granddaughters to be able to hear how I remember it and I also want them to have an idea of how I saw things in my life. I love you. Mom