Diane E. Peeling

I am number 13 in a family of 17 children. We grew up on a farm where everyone did everything. No one was excluded from contributing to getting the chores done. ----It was hard work and we never lacked for anything that was important. There was sibling rivalry and a lot of laughter. We played as hard as we worked.----Mom was the glue and the disciplinarian. The lesson ingrained was: Family is always important. Be true to yourself. ----Mom and Dad had their issues, yet you saw those flashes of love. I had the pleasure of getting to know my mother as a woman first. Once we developed that relationship, I have always respectfully treated every adult as a person first and parent second. As adults, we have needs and those needs do not always get met as parents. That gift alone is precious beyond words.----A tear escaped my father while he read a piece I wrote for him. I have been writing all my life. Life changes have sparked my creative energy to write. This was not the book I began. This was the book that I always wanted to write: my poetry/prose.