To see her as a young, naive, self-conscious girl, instead of just “Mom,” was a treat. I wish we had read them together while she was still with us. So many questions…

Around 2015, I blogged her diaries as a weekly series. People liked it. Torontonians enjoyed reading about old Toronto, when a family could pile into a car and drive up Yonge Street for a picnic. Women commented on the surprising amount of freedom she had—her parents were offstage, like a Charlie Brown cartoon. Everyone noticed the number of boys, the variety of outings, and the surprisingly late nights.

Her voice and personality come across the page clear as a bell. I can recognize her as my mother, but not. The years when her world was boys, boys, boys, will be, I’m guessing, the most popular section with readers. She is funny, flirting, sarcastic, plotting, and dancing her way through a whirlwind of social activity. Her experiences shine in comparison to today’s solitary scrolls through online profiles.

But then again, I have no idea how today’s teenagers date, or even if that word is still in use. The social life she described is very different from my own anemic dating experiences, and probably different again for someone who came of age in the 50’s, or the 80’s or 90’s. Which era had the most advantages? How has feminism, the advent of birth control, and the sexual revolution impacted dating?

In Bernice’s time, a premarital pregnancy would have been a major life-changing event as it was for many women–so sex was not assumed, but all the same, in her own discreet way, she lets us know she liked kissing and making out. 

Reading between the lines, it becomes obvious that she was sorting, assessing, and discarding boys as suited her. Sometimes they discarded her. Eventually she wanted a “steady”, someone who cares, and whom she likes. She met my father when his family moved into her neighbourhood. Here is one of my favourite passages from July 11, 1937:

“On the sofa he kissed me again. Oh_______________! Perfectly grand this time. Am still up in the clouds. I am beginning to think I am in love at last.”

As the daughter of this couple I have to admit, it’s nice to know they were hot for each other. “And how,” is how she would have worded it.

These journals are a valuable legacy for our family, but more than that, I believe this is a genuine coming-of-age story worthy of being published and shared​. An early purchaser told me she intends to give a copy to her 12-year-old granddaughter in the hopes of inspiring her to keep a diary of her own. I hadn’t even thought of that. 

I will be hosting at least two book launches. I’ll be available to join book club discussions, chat with book podcasters, or anyone interested in social and women’s studies.

I’m so excited. Click here to buy your copy.

Keep your joy.

Posted every Sunday, unless it’s a holiday or summertime.

Contentment is for Cows: Short and sweet reflections on life’s complications.