Lauren Ruth Wiener's Blog, page 2

Memory bomb 9: Complicated grief

On Feb 11, 1968, in the midst of his presidential campaign, Robert F. Kennedy came to Putney School, where his daughter was a junior, to speak at our Sunday night meeting.

Your fondest wish isn't someone else's

If I could have any wish, I’d wish for someone to appear out of the blue, offering me a sheaf of old papers of my mother’s. Coincidentally, I’ve been able to do just that for two strangers recently.

Memory bomb 8: Your fondest wish isn't someone else's

If I could have any wish, I’d wish for someone to appear out of the blue, offering me a sheaf of old papers of my mother’s. Coincidentally, I’ve been able to do just that for two strangers recently.

Mother's Day

If, as Mother’s Day approaches, you’re one of the people not buying a card—well, this one’s for you:

Memory bomb 7: Mother's Day

If, as Mother's Day approaches, you're one of the people not buying a card—well, this one's for you:

What a fool I've been

I wrote this memoir in the spirit of a Holocaust survivor: after enduring such an ordeal, the need to bear witness is strong. This happened; the world must know.

It’s not as if I were going to learn anything from writing this book. No, surely after years of therapy, I’ve gleaned all possible lessons. It’s the world that needs educating, not me.

Or so I thought. But then, why was it so hard to write certain stories so that they made sense?

Memory bomb 6: What a fool I've been

I wrote this memoir in the spirit of a Holocaust survivor: after enduring such an ordeal, the need to bear witness is strong. This happened; the world must know.

It's not as if I were going to learn anything from writing this book. No, surely after years of therapy, I've gleaned all possible lessons. It's the world that needs educating, not me.

Or so I thought. But then, why was it so hard to write certain stories so that they made sense?

Dad filmed the maid. A lot.

I don’t remember her, not at all. But boy, does she get screen time!

Memory bomb 5: Dad filmed the maid. A lot.

I don't remember her, not at all. But boy, does she get screen time!

Work with what you've got

“I’d like to write my memoirs, too,” an old friend told me. “Trouble is, I don’t remember anything!”