Have You Considered Living History?

While experiencing a major event in life, have you ever stopped and thought about the fact that, at that moment, you were living history?

Last month was the 20^th anniversary of 9-11, and as I read some of the news items of the day, it dawned on me that my youngest son had not even been alive on the day that the 9-11 events took place. So to him, it is a historical event and he won’t know or understand anything about it unless I tell him about it.

As I thought about that, I realized that when 9-11 happened, I was too busy being afraid of what was happening and wondering what I should do, to consider that what I was experiencing and living through, at that very moment, would become a historical event.

As I reflected back on my life, I realized there have been quite a few historical events that I lived through: July 20, 1969 the first man walked on the moon – I was just five years old but I remember watching that on T.V. with my parents. On January 28, 1986, like many other people that day, I sat, eyes glued to the television watching as Space Shuttle Challenger lifted off, carrying the first civilians to go into space, and just 73 seconds after liftoff there was an explosion that took the lives of all seven people on board and destroyed the rocket. I also remember hearing that the U.S. declared war on Iraq on Wednesday evening, January 16, 1991 on the radio after church, and the next morning, January 17, 1991 the Desert Storm/Gulf War began.

The four events listed above are the major historical events I remember, and not only do I remember them, but I remember where I was and what I was doing when they happened, and I remember how each of them affected me.

We are currently living through an actual chain of historical events: the Covid-19 pandemic, lockdown, a fraudulent election, and vaccine mandates.

Many writers have been told, “Write what you know.” Therefore, if you’re a history writer and you’re trying to figure out what historical time period or event to write your novel around, think about all of the historical events you’ve lived. The ones I listed in this article were big events, but there are also little events that happen in your neighborhood, town, or state. Consider the history you have lived and know best.

If you need more information to set your scene because you don’t remember exactly what your town was like during the historical event you choose, talk to friends, family, and neighbors. Many towns have a historical society or a public library that have historical information about your town.

Living history and historical information are closer than you might think.

Kelly F. Barr lives in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. She is married and has three sons. She writes historical romance. She has also been a blogger for ten years, and every Friday, you can find her Flash Fiction stories posted for your reading pleasure. She loves her family, including the family dog, books, walks, and chai lattes.

You can find her online at:

Website: kellyfbarr.com

MeWe: KellyBarr8