Pieces Of A Life

About the Book

A Must Read Before the Read

Several years ago, our home in Pennsylvania was burglarized while the family was away. My two daughters, who were then students at Penn State University, were called home to assess the damage. The burglars made a terrible mess, but took little. When the girls entered our bedroom, they found clothes, photo albums and books everywhere. As they straightened and replaced our belongings, they discovered the daily journals that I had kept for years.

The girls told me later, “We sat up all night and read your years of secret thoughts, Mom. We laughed and we cried, but kept reading until daylight. We decided that we don’t care about your jewelry or your paintings or your money when you die. We just want you to put your journals into book form for us to treasure when we don’t have you.”

After the robbery, I focused on the positive and grew from it. Initially, I enrolled at Penn State, took some writing classes, and began writing my memoirs for my children. Over the years, this project has evolved as I moved from one writing class to another. Originally, the book was intended only for my children. However, professional colleagues suggested that others might enjoy my tale.

My life story is one that deals with the honest basics in life. I’ve humbly opened my soul with stories that caused me heartaches and disappointments. I’ve also shared times that recall my courage, success and happiness. For me, mine is a story of triumph - one filled with lessons and blessings for which I am so grateful.

From my diaries, collected experiences of family members, letters, newspaper clippings, photo albums, legal documents and home movies, I have compiled this book. Some stories are embellished with conversation in order to bring characters to life and portray their personalities. Names have been changed to protect privacy.

Reliving my past has been therapeutic and liberating. The days I spent in research and at the keyboard over the past several years brought me belly shaking laughter as well as warm nostalgia and blinding tears. Through this project, I learned to accept and forgive myself as well as others. I learned to appreciate…I hope you enjoy!

Judith Kaye

About the Author

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