Beginnings

I am 27. According to adults older and wiser than me, I am just starting out in life, just truly discovering who I am. People ask me all the time, "Who are you?". How do I answer? A name, an adjective, a phrase. I am so many things, as I am now discovering, and only with all of them am I whole.

I am a daughter, a sister, a friend. I am quiet, and unorganized, and passionate. I am easily amused, a college gradute, a story teller. I laugh when things aren't funny, I procrastinate, I don't get enough sleep. I am a teacher. I am a sports fan. I am patriotic, and an American. I like sushi. I am left-handed. I love to read.

I have generations of family members who have come before me, from different countries around the world. I am German, and Swedish, and English, and Japanese. My family has a distinct and unique past, that has, in some form or another, shaped who I am today. I have become the person I am with the help of my family. Generations of people, each living their lives, each having an impact on shaping mine. Sisters, brothers, fathers, mothers. Laughter, tears, unexpected surprises. Life, simply put. Their lives have touched mine, and molded me into the person I am today.

It is this thought, then, this idea of my family directly impacting my own life, that has brought about this blog. The purpose of this blog, plain and simple, is to research my grandfather's life, through his own letter's and other resources, and put together a better understanding of who he is.

There may never be another soul who wanders onto this website. I realize that. This is not so much a quest to reach the masses, but a journey to help me understand not only my grandfather, but myself. I am, after all a history major. These things come easily to me. When my grandfather recently handed me a stack of letters from his service in WWII, I knew immediately what I wanted to do with them: I want to transcribe them, and research them further. There may never be another person in the world who appreciates this. But for me, in my own way, it is something that needs to be done.

As I transcribe the letters, and dig up more of his past, I will post here. I don't know how often it will be. I'm a busy girl, working two jobs to make ends meet. But this is a passion I have, so I hope to be back often to share more.

Until next time,
E