Yesterday we caught a glimpse of some of Wendy's journal entries.
Just in case you were wondering ...
both Wendy and Shane gave the okay for their journal pages to be shared on the blog.
Next up, showcasing Shane!
This is Shane ... 9 years old, funny face.
It is his artwork anyway.
Recently uncovered in the Westra Archives, was the handwritten journal of a young Shane Westra. Just nine years old. As the journal begins, we get a history of Shane's life - covering those first nine years. One has to assume that he does not actually remember all of the details from those earliest of days, but had been told stories of his birth and younger years, which he then recorded for posterity. In cursive ...
Ah, the smudges, tape stains, additions written in. Makes it authentic!
Pictures ages 2-5, early years and Kindergarten
Shane moved on to 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th grade.
Spotlighting teachers, friends and memorable experiences.
1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th grade photos
Jen notes "I really LIKED Mrs. Bullock/3rd grade!"
Check out School Daze for school memories and annual photos.
Now that the "history" has been recorded, day to day journaling begins ...
Much of what young Shane wrote is in the present tense.
"I am going to bed now" ... you will see that closes many an entry.
What can you gather from basic journal entries over the years? Shane mentions movies a lot ... it's interesting to see what was out in theaters, and what was popular on TV (MacGyver, Different Strokes, Family Ties, Cosby Show, Who's the Boss, Growing Pains, GI Joe). He mentions books (Here's a Penny, Trumpet of the Swan), games (Boggle), that Dad was in a car pool. On the next page, he starts with "I just got up, and got my feet warm" ... hmmm, how did he get his feet warm. I seem to recall Westra children sometimes gathering over a heating vent to catch the warm air coming out. He warms them up again on Thursday, and on page 8 (Mar26) he does specifically say "I warmed my feet on the heater".
"Frosted Graham Crackers" ... THAT needs to be a blog post!
(and now it is ... see it here Frosted Graham Crackers)
A classic Westra treat!
A little later on, "leather" in mentioned too.
... reading that last line, Shane mentions "Halley's Comet" which you may have heard of. Definitely journal worthy as is the only short-period comet that is regularly visible to the naked eye from Earth ... if you can say every 75-76 years is "regular". So even if Shane's journal entry hadn't been clearly marked with the year, from this one entry, we could have determined that it was 1986. The next time Halley's Comet can be seen will be July 28, 2061.
Page 5 above is not the end of Shane's writings. There are 36 pages scanned and safely stored in Dropbox (right under all the listings of the years, there is a PHOTOS and HISTORIES by FAMILY folder, which has folders for the six siblings, Marge/Lamar and some extended family, and this is where you would find pictures or documents specific to an individual). I figured 36 pages might be a little long for this blog post, so I'll summarize a few of the other treasured tidbits in Shane's recorded memories from 1986, and if you want, you can go to Dropbox to read the rest!
Shane mentions ...
- I was playing in the sand pile making Tunnel Town
- I picked up coupons (this was one of his jobs, picking up the coupon packets that came in the newspaper from other families who didn't use them ... Mom/Margie wanted them! There were boxes where we would "file" them).
- Today I milked an elephant (April Fools!)
- We went to a Rode Show, It was neat.
- I almost got the Presidential Award, missed it by two pullups
- I played with tadpoles that I got on Memorial Day
- Went to the orchard on a bike ride
- Transformers, watching TV and playing soccer
- Recorded "Cosby" (so we had a VCR)
... and apparently Shane would write in his journal right before going to bed, or at least that's how he ended almost every single entry. "Then I went to bed." Goodnight Shane! Thanks for the memories!
So fun!!
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