Some time ago, my sister, Jane, urged our immediate family members to contribute something in writing concerning our family to form a loose leaf book to be given to our sister, Sara, who had entered assisted living.
Subsequently, I dashed off a couple of articles about my experiences with Grandfather Rogers going to salt the cattle and going to the grist mill.
As time passed, I began to realize that being the oldest surviving member of the John and Mary Rogers Clan, I was privileged to have spent time on my grandparents' farm, even before electricity changed their lives.
I began to realize that if I did not put in writing what life was like then that perhaps some of our family history and our mountain culture might be lost forever.
Therefore, I have tried to bring in some history and some cultural aspects, some related trivia, and even some humor in these little stories. I have attempted to point out that life then was not simple and that our ancestors had to acquire a lot of skills to survive and prosper in that era. One can only admire the amount of knowledge that they acquired concerning plants, animals and nature as they learned to work with these elements.
These little narratives have been written not only for current, but for subsequent generations of our family, and for others who are interested in the culture of the people who lived in the Western North Carolina mountains. I can imagine someone a few generations from now reading what I have written and believing that this must be pure fiction, and that life could not have possibly been this primitive.
In doing this, I have often thought that this venture would be a complete waste of time and that no one would be interested in my writing, but since I have received encouragement from some friends and family to publish my stories. Also, I decided to broaden the scope and include some unique stories coming from my personal experiences. I have even included stories about some of my pets.
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