Life’s lessons make great memoirs

(Ek ontvang nou net die ondergedrukte skrywe van my spesiale vriendin, Charlotte, met wie ek al ‘n paar jaar saam loop met die skrywe van my Memoires. Ek doen my skrywe met haar in Engels. Sy gee een keer ‘n maand ‘n uitdaging/onderwerp om net 200 woorde te gebruik. Ingesluit is wat sy se en my stukkie)

Kia ora Ineke Kruger

It’s nice to pop into your world today, and exciting to welcome you newbies to my (mostly) weekly memoir chat. I’d love to know how you found me (considering how little marketing I’ve been doing lately)! If you want to explore a few years of memoir tips, pop into my blog.

The older we get, the more likely it is that we’ve learned a few life lessons along the way. Some are easier to learn than others. Sigh.

Speaking of sharing your words, last month I asked you to share some love stories (in honour of Valentine’s Day). Ineke sent me this heart tugging piece (trigger warning, this contains mention of suicide):

Love Songs

The ABBA song I Have a Dream “ reminds me of romantic times because it evokes the weekends I drove the two hours from Mokopane to Secunda to visit my future husband. The dream of my life as they sang it. Everything looked and sounded romantic back then, before we got married. Late Sunday night, on the way home, I played the song over and over again.

Green-eyed Angel  

While we were still dating, he recorded it on a tape and sent it to me. I played it over and over again – while hanging the washing or doing my chores. My eyes can be green at times, and that’s what fascinated him. It all depended on how I felt and also what colour clothes I was wearing. 

Some broken hearts

This was also a beloved song that made me homesick when I heard it. As our relationship was shaky at times, the song gave meaning to being together. Even today, I can say, My love for you will never die.

Don Williams was never, and still isn’t, the most popular singer to me, but Some Broken Hearts still breaks my heart, and I miss my husband.

We got married in 1980, and my husband committed suicide in 1993. It’s now 2026.

How did that story land with you? I could just imagine Ineke’s green eyes changing with her moods and can totally relate to the way some songs take her right back to those moments. I’m also in awe of Ineke’s honesty about her husband and her memories of and love for him.