I'm reading an autobiography written by a my daughter-in-law's grandfather. My daughter-in-law's family tells lots of stories about this grandfather so I was curious about his life story. I was also curious because he was born in Poland, the same country that many of my ancestors are from. I love to learn about places from first-hand accounts and especially like to read first-hand accounts from people connected to me in some ways because I can match those accounts with stories, images, and facts that others have relayed.
As I read this autobiography, I find myself doing a lot of research too. Fortunately the Internet provides easy access to images, maps, and history that can enrich my ability to understand and visualize the story. I also find myself noticing how the highlights of this man's story can still be noticed in the way his family lives today. Grandfather grew up in a mountainous region, later bought a cabin in the mountains, and his family still spends time in a similar region throughout the year. He came from a scholarly family and still today his family is scholarly, and he had a love of adventure and sport which also holds true today.
An additional reason why I'm reading this story is that this man was a strong, bright man who lived a good life. I enjoy reading stories about people who live good lives as I like to cull ideas from those stories for my own life. Already, I love the way he describes his surroundings and the way he was open minded to the many people and places that surrounded him. Clearly, he was not a judgemental man, but instead a man open to life's many dimensions, possibilities, and diversity. I LOVE this.
As I read this man's autobiography, I'm going to write my own autobiography. I am going to write chapters about my life that match the chapters he's written as each of his chapters focuses on a different story or aspect of his life. I have complimentary events in my own life that I'll write about. Like this man, I too have a vivid memory of the past and suspect that those of us with vivid memories are inspired to write it all down for anyone who might be interested to read in the future.