Faith_Family_Farm: Never Expected to Post 150 of These!

The posting of this blog marks the 150^th one that I have written. Never would I have thought I would reach this point. Writing a weekly blog hadn’t made my “bucket list” in 2013 – in truth, I don’t have a “bucket list."

We attended the Gates Family Reunion in Stillwater during July of 2013. As I visited, especially with the younger cousins, it became apparent many of the tales of the Gates family were unfamiliar to them. I told a couple of people that I might try to post one of these stories weekly, beginning in the fall of 2013.

As I mused over the day’s events that evening, I began to question what I had committed to do. Maybe I had bitten off more than I could chew. I had never even viewed or read a blog so I certainly knew nothing about writing one. I had read one or two articles about how to blog.

Many sessions of research on blogging, were followed by multiple days of trial and effort mixed with frustration. There were strident moments of regrets, directed at myself, for my hasty commitment to attempt something I knew so little about. To top it off, I knew Dad’s care ranked highest on my schedule.

Originally, the purpose of the blog, Faith_Family_Farm, was to convey Gates family stories that my father, Edmund Gates, Jr., had told. My insightful sister served as a good sounding board and source of information for this new endeavor. Angie, my sister, mentioned the name for the blog since a few of my manuscripts based on faith and farm experiences had been published already. She implied that I might want to “rerun” some of those articles, knowing how quickly my self-imposed weekly deadline would roll around.

Following some agonizing moments and multiple rewrites, I launched tenuously the blog, Faith_Family_Farm on September 1, 2013. The first blog posting was entitled He Was Paid for His Wheat in GOLD! It was a simple story about Grandpa Edmund Gates, Sr. being paid in gold for the wheat crop he sold. It can be accessed at: http://bernadeanjgates.blogspot.com/2013/09/he-was-paid-for-his-wheat-in-gold.html

My sister, knowing that I had no presence on social media, suggested that she post it on Facebook that Sunday morning. Surprisingly, many of the readers were not from the Gates family. Former students served as some of my strongest supporters and encouragers. Friends, neighbors, and relatives seemed to find the “gold” story interesting.

Thankfully, I had written down the Gates family stories as Dad had told them prior to his first stroke. Even though I attempted to carefully transcribe the history of the family of Edmund, Sr. and Mamie Irene Tripp Gates as told by my father, a few times I have longed to be able to ask Dad one or two questions for clarification.

As I reflected on the past blogs, I thought the some readers would be interested in the ten postings that drew the most readers. Below I have listed the posting titles and links to each one.

Not Much of a Wedding
http://bernadeanjgates.blogspot.com/2014/03/not-much-of-a-wedding.html

Why Observe Good Friday
http://bernadeanjgates.blogspot.com/2014/04/why-observe-good-friday.html

Finally, thanks to the many readers who have left meaningful comments. Several of you have conveyed to me that you enjoy the weekly blog posting. I appreciate those of you who have given information or photographs for some of the past blogs. My sister has been a driving force to get the blog to most of you. Thank you, Angie!

Every blog posting I have written holds a special meaning, usually because those featured in the posting are much loved. Many of the past blogs postings have come to my mind during this week. However, one of the postings has been in my thoughts considerably. It was entitled The Chocolate Rabbit. It focused on an event in my mother’s life as a child. Her actions revealed what a little thinker she was. At age 91, she continues to be "wickedly smart." Here is a link to this posting: http://bernadeanjgates.blogspot.com/2014/04/the-chocolate-rabbit.html

Mother in one of the
earliest photos taken
of her.

Faith_Family_Farm

Sunday, July 10, 2016

Never Expected to Post 150 of These!

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