Fleshing the Bones

By Brooke Broadbent

Brooke Broadbent is the author of over 100 published articles, 5 paper-based books and 3 ebooks. He holds an MA in adult education and is a trained life coach.

He enjoys sharing his knowledge of writing memoir and family history and makes information available on his website: www.telling-family-tales.com.

Brooke speaks at conferences, conducts writing workshops and coaches clients who are writing memoirs and family histories.

He lives on a lake in Quebec where he photographs wildlife, swims and writes.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Brooke Broadbent
• Release date: Jul 25, 2012
• ISBN: 9781476440156

Brooke Broadbent

Brooke started a journey in the new millennium as a management consultant with a major firm; a learning guru; a columnist; and an author of two highly acclaimed books about e-learning and the Internet. Events of his life transformed him into a certified personal and business coach, a keynote speaker and writer with a spiritual message. Brooke nourishes his soul while canoeing in the morning mist, cycling in nature, and trekking on rigorous Spanish pilgrimage trails. Here he finds spiritual inspiration for his writing and poetry. He lived a transformational experience while walking on the Camino de Santiago, a 1,000-year-old pilgrimage trail in Northern Spain. On the Camino Brooke embraced the pilgrim community, mindfulness and nature. In his new life, he has found inner peace and contentment and a drive to share his story with people who long to make an inner journey, or a pilgrimage on the Camino de Santiago. After his pilgrimage on the Camino Brooke, who had taught History after University, starting delving into the lives of his ancestors. This led to many published articles that are available on www.telling-family-tales.com and a family history, Moonrakers at Peace and War. Brooke has combined his training as a life coach, his experience as a writer and his passion for family history into a new activity: coaching others with the writing of their family history. More details at www.telling-family-tales.com.

Book preview

Fleshing the bones

Brooke Broadbent

.Copyright © 2012 by Brooke Broadbent.

Smashwords edition.

Ebook ISBN: 9781476440156

Smashwords License Statement

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each reader. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Other ebooks by Brooke Broadbent

Moonrakers at Peace and War

Living from the Heart with Lessons from the Camino de Santiago

Main website for free copies of published articles.

www.telling-family-tales.com

Comments? Questions? [e-mail]

INTRODUCTION

FAMILY HISTORY VERSUS GENEALOGY

AN EXAMPLE

WRITING A PAGE TURNER

A HEALTHY HOBBY

WRITING ABOUT FAMILY SHAME

EXERCISE

PRACTICE MAKES . . .

PUTTING YOU INTO THE STORY

TRIANGULATION

AN EXAMPLE OF TRIANGLUATION

PRESENTING DIFFFERENT POINTS OF VIEW

EXERCISE

HERITAGE TOURISM

EXERCISE

INTRODUCTION

She smiled, flapping her left hand in the air.

I’m ready, the retired teacher said.

In her right hand she held up an old photo. This young lady is my great aunt.

Rubbing the back of her hand across her forehead she said, Not sure what’s happening. Looks like a studio shot.

She screwed up her face, Why the bicycle.

Another smile, I’ve made up a story.

Let’s hear it, I said.

She read her story about the 100 year old photo in a clear voice, except for some emotional parts. When she finished I clapped and the other eight participants joined in, politely.

The retired teacher nodded in appreciation.

"Look’s like I’m next the retired doctor beside her said, leaning forward and nodding at me at the front of the room.

He spoke about his adventures as a ship’s doctor, again we clapped and the person sitting beside him read her story.

It was an unusually warn day in early May. The time of year when you don’t know what to expect weather-wise. A few minutes before the retired teacher spoke, I’d been carefully observing the group write their stories. Heads down; pausing from time to time; sometimes scribbling madly it seemed like every participant was absorbed by the exercise. But you never know in a family history writing course. Will participants write? Will they tell their stories? Will their stories be engaging. So far, this group was battling 1000.

It was as if they were channelling their ancestors, walking in their ancestors’ shoes (or more likely boots) and seeing the world through their eyes. There would be many revisions to their stories as new research uncovered more facts. The writing techniques would be tweaked. There could be more showing; less telling. All that would come with time. This first exercise was a good start. It was as if the stories were bottled inside the writers, waiting to be released.

Many people retire from the world of work and search for meaning through family history. It’s as if our DNA is hard-wired to turn our minds to the past as we contemplate our limited future. For some it’s the first time they’ve slowed down their lives long enough to find answers to who am I. Many of us have rogue ancestors and taking the time to understand the times they lived in helps us see the storm clouds in their lives. The clouds and storms come in the form of infant deaths, large families to feed, unemployment in the Great Depression, separation during the world wars as well as war wounds—physical and psychological.

Stepping into the boots of our ancestors and using internal monologue, dialogue, letter writing and other devices for connecting with kin allows us to gain a visceral sense of living at another time and place. It’s as if new life is pumped into our ancestors and they are