We have a really great writers’ guild in our area that includes beginners as well as seasoned writers.

In the 10 years that I’ve belonged, it’s been fun to watch “newbies” become polished, published writers. The transformation is amazing.One man said he came to his first meeting at the insistence of his wife because she said he had to find an interest that would lift him out of his depression.When Don worked up his courage to read some of his work, he was surprised at the good reception it got.He’s been coming back ever since, claiming writing lifted his heavy depression after heart surgery.When we get together each month, there is sharing time when members read a little of what they wrote and tell about any publishing success they’ve had.This month, the program chairman had an unique idea. “Instead of sharing what you write, tell us WHY you write,” she suggested.For me, that was easy to answer. I write for the same reason that I breathe: It is life sustaining in so many ways.Writing can energize me so much so that sometimes when I finish writing a story I am on such a high that I dance around my house in glee.When I finished writing my column last week, I was singing and dancing my way into the kitchen, making my husband comment on my good mood. Writing can do that for me.When I’m at the opposite end of the feelings spectrum — when I’m sad or worried or feeling down — writing is often the tranquilizer that returns me to feeling all is right with my world.When I was going through the worse crisis of my life when my first husband was suffering from so many serious health problems, I would often come to work with a muddled mind, wondering how I could clear my mind enough to write.But it would always seem so miraculous when I did start to write, and my mind cleared to the point where it felt like I had a tranquilizer.For me, the act of writing is a tranquilizer.When I am struggling with an issue, writing sometimes helps me make sense of the world.Often, I don’t even know I have a thought until I type it on my computer. When that happens, it’s as if it was written by a hidden hand.When that clarity comes through the act of writing, what I write sometimes helps others understand me. Mostly though, writing helps me understand myself.It’s a cheap way to have fun, and it’s the cheapest but most effective therapist.When each member of the writer’s guild got up to talk about why they write, I could relate to much of what was said.But the writer who most resonated with me was Don, the fellow who discovered the joy of writing after his heart surgery.Don’s answer for why he writes is that he does it for his family. “I write for my children, my children’s children and for great-grandchildren not yet born.“I realized that I will not be here when one might wonder about me. I published my book because I want them to know me through the stories I leave behind,” he said.What an extraordinary gift he will leave behind for his family.I can’t tell you the number of times I have a burning question about my family. I have plenty of important questions that will never be answered because those who could answer them are forever gone.My dad was a great storyteller. He could talk about his latest hunting trip and make it sound like pages from a best-seller.Once, when he started to tell me about stealing apples as a boy because he was hungry and there was nothing to eat in the house, I wanted to know more. I also wanted my grandkids to know not every kid has an easy life.But when I turned on a tape player to record his stories, Dad stopped talking. “No one will want to know that stuff,” he said.Of course they will. But they will never have the chance.My grandkids will grow up knowing nothing about how my dad worked underground as an anthracite miner. They will never know he was yanked out of school at the age of 10 to help support his widowed mother.My great-grandkids who will arrive long after I am gone won’t know there was such a thing as an anthracite miner. And maybe they won’t know there was such a thing as a newspaper writer.Don used one of those inexpensive self-publishing houses to print his wonderful book of memories.But you don’t need to do a book. You could just start writing about your life in a simple notebookEvery town has classes that teach memoir writing, but you don’t need a class to tell your own stories.If you want to leave behind a priceless legacy, put your memories down on paper. Or, do a simple recording.Don’t get hung up on technique. Just tell your stories the same way you would talk to a friend.It will cost little to do it. But for your family, some day it will be a priceless gift.Contact Pattie Mihalik at

newsgirl@comcast.net.