Just Jot January - 2018

#JusJoJan for January 5 is "Memories" suggested by Cage Dunn.

This is an easy prompt for me.  Memories are so important.  My mom is 94 and the last of the living relatives in her generation.  All of my aunts and uncles have passed away and I only knew one of my grandparents, my grandmother on my mother's side.  I am really sorry I did not ask her more questions about how her life was growing up and the early years with my grandfather.

I have a few pictures and I know that my grandmother spoke German and my grandfather spoke Italian.  My mom was one of twin girls and she had two brothers and another sister.

Here are my grandparents with the first set of grandchildren.  

I know even less about my dad's side of the family and have only one picture of the whole Stagnaro family together:

My dad is the handsome boy on the right standing next to his mother.  I knew my aunts and uncles on my dad's side but never met his parents.  My aunt (all in white) was the Queen of the day or something, I'm not even sure what.  

I know I need to sit down with some of these pictures and have my mom explain them to me and get the particulars so that I can put them in scrapbooks for my children.  It makes me sad to think about all the people who have lost their pictures in the recent fires we've had in California, not to mention all the hurricanes and floods.  Without these for reference, the memories will be lost as each generation passes. 

Write things down!  Tell the stories.  Don't let the memories fade.  

Thanks again to Linda G. Hill and the rest of the Just Jot January gang.