A fellow had a dream he says, about a bridge linking Gabriola to Vancouver Island. Oh my, I thought, I wonder why he would move to an island and then start to dream about a bridge that would stop it from being an island? Thinking about the ramifications of a bridge had quite an effect […]
Shaw TV Interview – How I became the Life Story Writer
There is no greater gift than sharing the experiences and wisdom of a lifetime with family and friends. How do family members know who they are if they don’t know where they came from – their roots? But the challenge is in getting started.
In his book On Writing Well author William Zinsser said:
One of the saddest sentences I know is “I wish I would have asked my mother about that. Or my father. Or my grandmother, or grandfather”…
It is sometimes difficult to write about yourself in a detached manner that provides an interesting read for others. Many people put off this activity and never find the time. With some encouragement and a good guide, however, it can be a pleasant, rewarding journey to tell your own unique story.
I live on Southern Vancouver Island and can travel to record your memories of past events and the people who have made your life special. In the comfort of your home this process will be relaxing and enjoyable. It will no doubt be fun too. We will add photos and special documents if applicable, and then we will have your story professionally printed. What a gift – for you, your family, the next generations, and friends – can you imagine holding the book in your hands, seeing it on your coffee table, in your bookcase, reading stories to your grandchildren? It will be much cherished.
How often have you wished that your forebears had left written stories of their lives? A family tree may appeal to some, and facts may appeal to others, but stories are how we get to know people and the times in which they lived.
You may not think you have led an exceptional life, but I am sure that through this process, you will end up thinking otherwise. You will have fun, perhaps shed some tears, and remember details you may have forgotten, but overall, you will be thankful that you made this journey into your past. It will be the creation of a special legacy for your sons and daughters, grandchildren and great grandchildren, or friends; they will be so grateful that your stories are preserved. Don’t wait – give me a call and let’s get started.
Family and Friends
If you are a family member or friend, here’s the most special gift you will ever find for your loved one. Give the gift of a life story book to a beloved parent, grandparent, aunt, uncle or friend.
Retirement Gift
A book of photos and stories from coworkers makes an amazing and unique retirement gift.
Your Company History
Make it work for you! A short publication packed with personal anecdotes and interesting photographs can be an ideal gift for clients, and a wonderful coffee table book in your office. Highlighting projects and giving clients the opportunity to learn more about the special people who work on them can be a determining factor in developing trust. Posting the business memoir to your website will make your company stand out from all the rest!
Decisions, decisions, decisions…
Having troubles with decisions? Some days it feels like there’s a clear path right in front of us, and then what a bother, just a few feet further on, a whole bunch of boulders jump out and the path is no longer as clear as we might have hoped. We start to feel a little […]
The bigness of the world
“The bigness of the world is redemption. Despair compresses you into a small space, and a depression is literally a hollow in the ground. To dig deeper into the self, to go underground, is sometimes necessary, but so is the other route of getting out of yourself, into the larger world, into the openness in […]
Beginning Again – always beginning
“If the angel deigns to come, it will be because you have convinced her, not by tears but by your humble resolve to be always beginning; to be a beginner.” – Rainer Maria Rilke How hard it is to be always beginning, to push away the chill of frozen judgments and instead, to invite in […]
Baloo – my navigator
“Baloo”, said the vet “is a mix of lab and shepherd, and who knows what else. If you are interested it’s possible to do a DNA search.” “Are you kidding” I responded, “I just wanted to know the major parts of this Heinz 57 creation because people are always asking me “What’s he made of?” […]
“To love is good, too”
“To love is good, too: love being difficult. For one human being to love another: that is perhaps the most difficult of all our tasks, the ultimate, the last test and proof, the work for which all other work is but preparation.” -Rainer Maria Rilke Photograph© 2014 Janice Henshaw – Tofino
Ste. Anne, Manitoba, Aug. 12, 2012
August 12th, Sunday, Ste. Anne, Manitoba, Lilac Resort $32.00 (Around 270km from Brandon) Mornings are the best! It means that one has survived the night with no exciting wake up calls. It means fresh ground coffee, and a whole new day of adventure waiting just outside my door. What will happen today, tonight, tomorrow? Next […]
“Life will go on but never be the same…”
My February article in Seaside Magazine is available at this link: http://seasidemagazine.ca/ The article is called “Life will go on but will Never be the Same.” “Your heart, beating away – counted upon, mostly ignored, often short on maintenance – until one day, it falters, and your whole life changes…” *Photograph courtesy of http://www.nuttycake.com/
Grow in the Open Air
“Now I see the secret of the making of the best persons. It is to grow in the open air, and to eat and sleep with the earth.” – Walt Whitman Photograph © Janice Henshaw 2014 – Joyce Lockhart Park, Gabriola Island
Sorrow and joy
“Sorrow prepares you for joy. It violently sweeps everything out of your house, so that new joy can find space to enter. It shakes the yellow leaves from the bough of your heart, so that fresh, green leaves can grow in their place. It pulls up the rotten roots, so that new roots hidden beneath […]
Don’t Hibernate for Too Long!
Don’t hibernate for too long when the going gets tough because then it gets harder and harder to break through your own built up walls of self-absorption. Fight back against self-imposed limits and ideas. Go out and have an adventure – play! It may be a bit scary, but it’s a lot more fun! Janice […]
Friendship
“Oh, the comfort – the inexpressible comfort of feeling safe with a person, Having neither to weigh thoughts, Nor measure words – but pouring them All right out – just as they are Chaff and grain together Certain that a faithful hand will Take and sift them Keep what is worth keeping And with the […]
Kindness and Courage
“Life is mostly froth and bubble, Two things stand like stone. Kindness in another’s trouble, Courage in your own.” – Adam Lindsay Gordon Photograph © Janice Henshaw 2014
Lighten up your picture
Your attitude is like a box of crayons that color your world. Constantly color your picture gray, and your picture will always be bleak. Try adding some bright colors to the picture by including humor, and your picture begins to lighten up. ~Allen Klein Photo © Janice Henshaw 2016 Spring tulip
Leave the city of your comfort
“You have to leave the city of your comfort and go into the wilderness of your intuition. What you’ll discover will be wonderful. What you’ll discover is yourself.” ~Alan Alda Photograph © Janice Henshaw 2015
Moon rising over fog bank – South Pender Island
“As we open to what is actually happening in any given moment … we can find ourselves rewoven into the pattern of wholeness, into the immensity of life.” – Sharon Salzberg, from Faith
How we can each find peace in our world
Affirmation: I choose to respond to life’s provocations, not with anger, resentment, or regret, but with equanimity and a focus on positive action. – Jonathan Lockwood Huie
Why bad things happen to good people?
“Is there an answer to the question of why bad things happen to good people?…The response would be…to forgive the world for not being perfect, to forgive God for not making a better world, to reach out to the people around us, and to go on living despite it all…no longer asking why something happened, […]
Each one of us is alone in the world
YOUR TRUE HOME “Each one of us is alone in the world. It takes great courage to meet the full force of your aloneness. Most of the activity in society is subconsciously designed to quell the voice crying in the wilderness within you. The mystic Thomas a Kempis said that when you go out into […]
Don’t let the elephant get you down…
“When one feels pulled to do a particular thing, when one has passion for a certain life path, karma is always involved. In such an instance, when the goal is worthy and makes one happy, one should continue on that same life path. Just because the elephant cannot carry you anymore doesn’t mean you should […]




















