Martha RascheOct 16, 20182 minChemotherapy with A Side of Life StoriesIn February, a woman from a neighboring town learned about my Life Stories classes and immediately expressed a strong interest in taking ...
Martha RascheAug 21, 20181 minI Want to Know MoreI am gearing up for fall Life Stories classes. This means I have times and locations set, and now I go through my list of prospective par...
Martha RascheJul 26, 20181 minA Quote“Your heartache is someone else’s hope. If you make it through, somebody else is going to make it through. Tell your story.” — Kim McManu...
Martha RascheJun 26, 20181 minOpportunities LostIn early spring I committed to working on writing the life stories of an 89-year-old Indianapolis man. His relatives who were hiring m...
Martha RascheApr 23, 20185 minJoys on the Journey— This is the presentation I gave at tonight's Celebrate Today dinner, Memorial Hospital's quarterly celebration for cancer survivors — F...
Martha RascheApr 9, 20181 minDays of MoonshineMy “Remember When…?” discussion group at a local nursing home wanted to talk about moonshine last month. Bootlegging in the middle of the...
Martha RascheMar 16, 20182 minThrough It All, the HumorIn 2015 I spent this week of March in an Indianapolis hospital, where I underwent a biopsy that revealed I had non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Phys...
Martha RascheJan 8, 20181 minA Quote“Like a friend said, it feels like a library burns down every time an elder dies.” — Jim Northrup, “Anishinaabe Syndicated” #writing
Martha RascheDec 10, 20172 minThe PayoffA few weeks ago I met one of my Life Stories participants at a local printer and handed over a stick drive with her stories on it. The em...
Martha RascheSep 8, 20171 minOur Stories Best Survive Us in Writing“I wish I’d have listened more,” my co-worker said, referring to her father’s oral stories about his military service during World War II...
Martha RascheAug 6, 20172 minWhat I WoreThese days find me sorting donations at the local St. Vincent de Paul store, and one day last week I came upon a large grocery bag filled...
Martha RascheJul 4, 20171 minA Quote“The greatest asset any old person has is his or her life experience. When you have the opportunity to interact with an old person, you s...
Martha RascheJun 5, 20171 minBeatle ManiaAfter taking a nine-week Life Stories class, my groups continue meeting for six monthly follow-ups to share stories they have newly writt...
Martha RascheApr 25, 20172 minLiving, and Dying, in Nursing HomesA woman who enrolled in a Life Stories class in January 2016 enrolled for a second time last fall. She is serious about her writing and m...
Martha RascheMar 9, 20171 minJoan's RecipesJoan, my mom’s cousin and a close family friend, was a great cook, and the sweet treats she made were ahhh-mazing. I remember from my chi...
Martha RascheFeb 16, 20171 minHis Excuse Was Amnesia. What's Yours?My Friday morning Life Stories classes meet in the library of the local senior center. During a class last week, a gentleman came in to d...
Martha RascheFeb 9, 20172 minLaughing While You WriteWriting your life story is an opportunity like no other to look back on and share funny moments. A 90-year-old client and I shared many l...
Martha RascheJan 25, 20171 minBridging Generation GapsI’ve helped seniors write their life stories through which the writers’ grandchildren have learned that depression, heart disease and eve...
Martha RascheJan 18, 20171 minDon't Give In to Feeling OverwhelmedThese dreary winter days provide the perfect time to start writing your life stories. That is how I think of them, a succession of short ...
Martha RascheOct 20, 20161 minMaking History RealLife stories bring history home. They make history REAL. A couple of guys who were in one of my classes last year served our country in V...