This is a freewrite from this prompt
Freewrites are short pieces of spontaneous writing which can be fantastic or make not much sense.
Pen
What all comes to mind? That the pen is one of the most powerful things we invented with time. Well, the written word - which at one point meant tablets and maybe chisels. Or are the cave paintings of old considered writing? It does convey history beyond the spoken word
We have lost the art of passing on our history through the spoken word, through storytelling. Yes, we all can still speak but we do not remember. And we do want a new story every day - not that there are any new stories. Just the same ones told over and over again. Different actors, different settings, same old story.
This became so apparent when I was listening to audiobooks from the public domain. I love the Librivox project and had have listened to so many stories written maybe one hundred or more years ago.
Take the horses and replace them with cars, take the hand-delivered note and replace them with a text message - and the story is the same.
Still, the same sexism going on - just more veiled. Or any other form of discrimination. Yes, we have made progress- but it is still with us.
Back to what I wanted to write about. I lost so much of our family history because I can't remember. The old aunties told the stories, but we didn't listen. And we didn't ask for the same story over and over again.
They all knew who was related to whom - who lived where - who married whom and what their stories were.
And I didn't listen or didn't care or don't
remember. Now, I wished I had listened and remembered.
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