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Maddalena
What would possess a five foot, shy sixteen year old girl who speaks no English to get on a boat and go to the USA in 1914? She wasn’t a political refugee and was not fleeing a war zone. She was escaping a controlling mother! Her family lived comfortably in a small town, her father;…
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A lost child
Lost children can be found in many families. Their parents love them, but are too messed up themselves to be good parents. There are lots of clues of the dark side, but there are good times too. I was only 14 when I first held Tim in my arms. He was a lovable, beautiful baby.…
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Ripped off, the story of “Jim” Fressola
My only American grandparent was born in Manhattan, New York at the end of the 19th century. He was born in the USA to recent Italian immigrants. He was their last child, born when they were already advanced in age, and had more or less given up on having a son at all, having had…
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My quick vacation with Chris, Roaches and the Omak Stampede
Well, it was just an idea I had one morning, I’d take Chris and her horse crazy granddaughter to the Omak stampede. Unfortunately, the granddaughter couldn’t go with us. We listened to cousin Kathy Peterson’s band, Loose Change, visited with cousins, (a lot more cousins than I expected!) and got to see, draw and pet…
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My best friend
Growing up, many little girls fall in love with horses. A few lucky ones actually get to be around horses and even fewer to have horses of their own. Acting out my own dream, I moved to Idaho when I was 18 years old, and by the time I was 21, I owned my own…