I feel the same about London, a city I moved to 40 years ago, and that I am about to leave. It seems the hidden, shabby areas have all disappeared. In winter there used to be carts on the street selling chestnuts in paper bags, and old ladies selling violets, the first flowers after winter.
These memories are part of the small history of our lives. If we do not recall them then the chestnut and violet sellers may be forgotten.
Lisa, thank you for introducing me to Substack. When I created the account today, your Substack was immediately recommended to me, so I didn't even need to go looking for it!
What a great piece of writing. At the end, you pose the question to yourself, "What does this have to do with writing family history?" I would say most of all that your connection with Paris and other cities has helped raise your intuition, which is a key skill for a researcher, akin in some ways to a detective. You know what to do with the clues you find and where and how to ask more questions to make progress toward the heart of the matter! Cela a donc beaucoup à voir avec l'écriture de l'histoire familiale!
I feel the same about London, a city I moved to 40 years ago, and that I am about to leave. It seems the hidden, shabby areas have all disappeared. In winter there used to be carts on the street selling chestnuts in paper bags, and old ladies selling violets, the first flowers after winter.
These memories are part of the small history of our lives. If we do not recall them then the chestnut and violet sellers may be forgotten.
Lisa, thank you for introducing me to Substack. When I created the account today, your Substack was immediately recommended to me, so I didn't even need to go looking for it!
What a great piece of writing. At the end, you pose the question to yourself, "What does this have to do with writing family history?" I would say most of all that your connection with Paris and other cities has helped raise your intuition, which is a key skill for a researcher, akin in some ways to a detective. You know what to do with the clues you find and where and how to ask more questions to make progress toward the heart of the matter! Cela a donc beaucoup à voir avec l'écriture de l'histoire familiale!