December 8
Laura M., age 15, North Carolina
December 8, 1997
Kinda crappy at school. Justin is almost too sweet. Emily picked me up. Worked with Ann and Brian. They’re fun. Mom came at 5:00. Kathy got X-mas tree. Put it up, but didn’t decorate yet. Did homework. Showered. Mom trimmed my hair and I twisted it for tomorrow.
Marcy S., age 47, North Carolina
December 8, 1971
The eternal search for one’s real self. I wonder if anyone ever finds himself long enough and fully enough to be himself. The rare moments that I have found and been my true self have come unexpectedly when I was making no effort to find and no effort to relax. This search isn’t like looking for a lost item around the house where you do have to make an effort. That is, if you’re looking for something that someone else misplaced. If you misplaced it yourself, sometimes you remember where you put it if you just stop trying to remember.
What is a person’s real, true self? Is he born with it or does it grow within him as he lives? I think the true self is a gift of God — it is creative, it is free, self-giving, open, trusting and trustworthy. Is this what it means to be filled with the Holy Spirit? Integrity, wholeness. When we lose our lives we find them.
Is it because we are finite that we are incapable of figuring things out for ourselves, of conducting our own search for self and finding and being who we really are? If we believe that God created us then we really can’t find ourselves apart from Him. There’s a verse in the Bible about “our lives being hidden with Christ in God” (or in Christ with God?).
Anna L., age 75, Illinois
December 8, 1960
Talked with Edna in the A.M. Mary Blum called. She knew of Mary’s death. Mrs. B. had been here for coffee. Katherine Renich came in P.M. we had coffee and Fattigman. Lo had planned to go to Elgin so did after eating. Had letter from Harry, bad snow storm there about 10 days ago. Very cold today, wind bad.
Marcy S., age 14, Tennessee
December 8, 1938
Practiced. Cloudy day. Funny dream last night. No chapel. After Spelling Miss Goodwin asked me to take some bowls out to the restroom and wash them. Carol Watson came in (she’d seen me going in there) and gave me “Little Lady Make Believe.” Today is Open House at both buildings and everyone is busy. We went in library for study-hall instead of having Home Ec. class. Mrs. Cummins let Mary help her, though. No Algebra class. I think Margaret Whittacker was just put here for bothering people because she certainly makes a good job of it. Home for dinner. Mother not there because she was on the entertaining and food committee for Open House so of course she was at school. I ate lunch by myself. Back to school. Mary went up to old building with me to find Mrs. Moore. Since we get out early I couldn’t take my lesson at usual time so I decided to take it now with Earl. The bell rang then so Mary had to go. But Mrs. Moore asked her to tell Miss Goodwin where I was. Earl and I gave a pantomime. Quite funny. Back to school for short English class. Then to library for awhile. About 3:00 we got off. Mary walked home with me. Cloudy. Mother had come home and was resting but soon dressed and went back to school. Mary and I worked on Mother’s apron for Christmas. About 4:30 she had to leave. I hid her coat and we had fun. I was going to walk a little way with her but we had only gotten to Cummins steps when Mother drove up. We ran and got in the car. First I got my library book and then we drove Mary home. Then to library where I got “Emily Climbs” by L.M. Montgomery. We drove back home and got my Latin book and took it over to Mary’s because she had forgotten hers and she didn’t have it. Then we put the car away and went home. Studied and practiced. After supper and dishes I got ready for bed and at 8:00 listened to Major Bowes. Then to bed. Daddy home late.
Henry S., age 26, Michigan
December 8, 1887
Did the usual amount of sawing wood this morning. Gathered some wild cherry bark and mullin for Kate to make a blood medicine for both of us with. I expect it will renew our ages very good. The baby’s cough still continues, but she is not very bad yet. I called to see Dr. Taylor after school but he had started going for New York this morning. It has been cloudy but mild all day. I wish such weather might continue.
*(R. Henry Scadin Collection, D.H. Ramsey Library Special Collections, UNC Asheville)
William B., 19 years old, P.O.W. in Delaware
December 8, 1864
Nothing important from Sherman Richmond papers consider of fight at Franklin as a Confed victory. Weather fair + windy + cold night extremely cold + suffered from cold very much.
*(William Hyslop Summer Burgwyn Private Collection, North Carolina State Archives)
Cornelia H., age 26, North Carolina
December 8, 1862
Very cold today. Boyd put up the loom in the hall room as the chimney is not commenced to the dining room yet. I made Mr. Henry’s flannel drawers today. It was so cold I could not half sew. Fannie & Atheline spinning on the new wheel. It does very well. Jinnie doing the cooking. The other hands fixing up the cow pen here above the house. The ground frozen so hard they can’t plow.
*(Fear in North Carolina: The Civil War Journals and Letters of the Henry Family, Eds. Karen L. Clinard and Richard Russell, used with permission.)
Samuel P., age 34, London
December 8, 1667
(Lord’s day). All the morning at my chamber doing something towards the settling of my papers and accounts, which have been out of order a great while. At noon to dinner, where W. How with us, and after dinner, he being gone, I to my chamber again till almost night, and then took boat, the tide serving, and so to White Hall, where I saw the Duchesse of York, in a fine dress of second mourning for her mother, being black, edged with ermine, go to make her first visit to the Queene since the Duke of York was sick; and by and by, she being returned, the Queene come and visited her. But it was pretty to observe that Sir W. Coventry and I, walking an hour and more together in the Matted Gallery, he observed, and so did I, how the Duchesse, as soon as she spied him, turned her head a one side. Here he and I walked thus long, which we have not done a great while before. Our discourse was upon everything: the unhappiness of having our matters examined by people that understand them not; that it was better for us in the Navy to have men that do understand the whole, and that are not passionate; that we that have taken the most pains are called upon to answer for all crimes, while those that, like Sir W. Batten and Sir J. Minnes, did sit and do nothing, do lie still without any trouble; that, if it were to serve the King and kingdom again in a war, neither of us could do more, though upon this experience we might do better than we did; that the commanders, the gentlemen that could never be brought to order, but undid all, are now the men that find fault and abuse others; that it had been much better for the King to have given Sir J. Minnes and Sir W. Batten 1000l. a-year to have sat still, than to have had them in his business this war: that the serving a Prince that minds not his business is most unhappy for them that serve him well, and an unhappiness so great that he declares he will never have more to do with a war, under him. That he hath papers which do flatly contradict the Duke of Albemarle’s Narrative; and that he hath been with the Duke of Albemarle and shewed him them, to prevent his falling into another like fault: that the Duke of Albemarle seems to be able to answer them; but he thinks that the Duke of Albemarle and the Prince are contented to let their Narratives sleep, they being not only contradictory in some things (as he observed about the business of the Duke of Albemarle’s being to follow the Prince upon dividing the fleete, in case the enemy come out), but neither of them to be maintained in others. That the business the other night of my Lord Anglesey at the Council was happily got over for my Lord, by his dexterous silencing it, and the rest, not urging it further; forasmuch as, had the Duke of Buckingham come in time enough, and had got it by the end, he, would have toused him in it; Sir W. Coventry telling me that my Lord Anglesey did, with such impudence, maintain the quarrel against the Commons and some of the Lords, in the business of my Lord Clarendon, that he believes there are enough would be glad but of this occasion to be revenged of him. He tells me that he hears some of the Thomsons are like to be of the Commission for the Accounts, and Wildman, which he much wonders at, as having been a false fellow to every body, and in prison most of the time since the King’s coming in. But he do tell me that the House is in such a condition that nobody can tell what to make of them, and, he thinks, they were never in before; that every body leads, and nobody follows; and that he do now think that, since a great many are defeated in their expectation of being of the Commission, now they would put it into such hands as it shall get no credit from: for, if they do look to the bottom and see the King’s case, they think they are then bound to give the King money; whereas, they would be excused from that, and therefore endeavour to make this business of the Accounts to signify little. I spoke with him about my Lord Sandwich’s business, in which he is very friendly, and do say that the unhappy business of the prizes is it that hath brought all this trouble upon him, and the only thing that made any thing else mentioned, and it is true. So having discoursed with him, I spent some time with Sir Stephen Fox about the business of our adjusting the new method of the Excise between the Guards household and Tangier, the Lords Commissioners of the Treasury being now resolved to bring all their management into a course of payment by orders, and not by tallies, and I am glad of it, and so by water home late, and very dark, and when come home there I got my wife to read, and then come Captain Cocke to me; and there he tells me, to my great satisfaction, that Sir Robert Brookes did dine with him today; and that he told him, speaking of me, that he would make me the darling of the House of Commons, so much he is satisfied concerning me. And this Cocke did tell me that I might give him thanks for it; and I do think it may do me good, for he do happen to be held a considerable person, of a young man, both for sobriety and ability. Then to discourse of business of his own about some hemp of his that is come home to receive it into the King’s stores, and then parted, and by and by my wife and I to supper, she not being well, her flux being great upon her, and so to bed.
*(The Diary of Samuel Pepys M.A. F.R.S., edited by Henry B. Wheatley F.S.A., London, George Bell & Sons York St. Covent Garden, Cambridge Deighton Bell & Co., 1893.)