WRITE IT DOWN!

By Peg Pfingsten

"Write it down--give your children the gift of their heritage!" I deliver this parting encouragement at the end of my parent-training seminars after reading an excerpt from Singing for Show and Tell, a book I’m writing with my journalist son Tom. This passage tells of a visit to a UCLA neurologist with my 12-month-old grandson, who eventually had brain surgery. It describes the emotions that controlled my thinking until, through prayer, God reminded me that I needed to trust Him—even with our precious Joel. The account communicates how this trust led to peace when I remembered how God had already repeatedly shown His hand in little Joel’s life. 

At the seminars, I challenge parent-teachers to pick up their journals, spiral notebooks, or even scraps of paper to record their stories, especially the ones where God has shown Himself. Our Father encouraged the patriarchs in the Bible to stack stones together as memorials when they recognized God’s hand touching their lives. Whenever the Israelites passed their monuments, they were reminded to speak to their children about the mighty works of God. So must we.

This past August, I found myself clearing out my father-in-law’s bedroom staring at yellowed, cracking pictures of farmers in front of homes and churches. I knew they had stories—probably many—but those stories were lost. Since Dad could no longer recall his history, I reluctantly tossed the pictures. The photos were meaningless.

Then I found a tool more powerful than journals, notebooks, and scraps of paper. This tool uses technology to combine stories, photos, and art into beautiful full-color hard-back books. Customers are each assigned a free account on a website, then upload their photos, choose from a large library of [optional] page art, add their stories, and click “Publish.” Within ten working days, they receive their personal books in the mail. The cost is modest. The results are priceless.

To test the process, I decided to try to capture the sweet spirit of my seven-year-old grandson Jonny. I compiled a list of questions and sat down at a computer with him. We talked while I typed. Later, I put his words with photos that had been stored in folders on my laptop—some for years. The result was a book that not only he and I love to pour over together, but also his mom and dad, brother, grandpa, aunt, uncle, and even strangers. But, more importantly, Jonny has a book where he can read his own words telling what God means to him.

Please note though, I think the company needs to add a warning to their product. I had so much fun creating this book that I’m addicted and want to play with my personal publishing system daily.

To learn more, follow www.once-upon-a-memory.com to my Heritage Maker website. You’ll find tutorials, called webinars, and you can click on “Create a New Account.” You then receive a free Digital Publishing site, which is password protected, and an account number.  You can begin uploading your photos, working on your book or other project (personalized calendars, greeting cards, or posters), and enjoy the fun of being a Heritage Maker.  Important: If you do not have an account number, your project will not be saved. Contact me at onceuponamemorypeg@gmail.com or at 760-723-5949 if you have questions or want to save money by pre-paying for your project.

Preserve Your Heritage

with Heritage Makers Web-based publishing

Peg Pfingsten

760-723-5949

www.Once-Upon-A-Memory.com

Do your children resist writing?

Teaching writing is sometimes an overwhelming proposition for parent-teachers, who often feel unskilled in this subject. Peggy Pfingsten, founder of Tutor Mom and experienced home schooling mom, comes alongside moms and dads in the home schooling community by teaching, training, and tutoring parents and children in writing. Mrs. Pfingsten offers classes that are designed to meet students of all ages at their levels and impart usable writing tools to them. She does this through:

• Workshops that train parent/teachers in writing skills and teaching techniques
• Sentence workshops that teach early beginning writers to compose strong, interesting sentences
• 27-week classes that offer ongoing teaching to students from grades 3-12
• 12-week classes that teach high school students to create research papers
• Individual tutoring

Our Geographical Coverage:

Our courses are offered in San Diego & Riverside Counties, California, only.