Bookmark My Words: Stephen Rostand

Wisdom and Inspiration from Modern Memoirs Authors

At Modern Memoirs, Inc., we bring our expertise and passion to every phase of the publishing process on behalf of the writers who entrust us with their work. In return, we often learn a great deal from authors about their own interests and expertise. And whether they write about piloting or painting, ballroom dancing or gardening, entrepreneurship or grandparenting, their passions often lead to wisdom and life lessons that transcend specific subjects.

In our new blog series “Bookmark My Words: Wisdom and Inspiration from Modern Memoirs Authors,” we feature compelling excerpts from clients’ books that have stayed with us over time. We then invite these authors to act as “guest bloggers” and offer new commentary on how their outside interests have enriched their lives with purpose and meaning.

This month we feature Dr. Stephen Rostand, whom we asked: “What life lessons or wisdom have you gained from your love of photography?”

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Photography as Memoir

By Stephen Rostand

“It is not the change in landscape that is needed, but rather new eyes, and time. And it may not necessarily take a lot of time. Sometimes, simply becoming more aware of one’s surroundings can, in just a few minutes, reveal the humor in life or its beauty, and that instant of sudden insight can bring pleasure and linger in one’s memory, refreshing one’s life.”

—Stephen Rostand, It’s Okay to Play (Modern Memoirs, 2024)

Morning, Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming © 2024 Stephen Rostand

Play, Durham, North Carolina © 2024 Stephen Rostand

Pike’s Peak, Colorado © 2024 Stephen Rostand

In learning the art of photography, you begin to notice things you have not noticed before, and you gain a new way of seeing and feeling, a sense of freedom. Most of us are fully occupied with work and the activities of daily living; as a result, our minds are engaged with planning and organizing those activities to the exclusion of much else. We lead blinkered lives. Often when we are out and about, and despite the ubiquity of smartphone cameras, we are not fully aware of our surroundings even when they are familiar to us. We miss a lot. Too often we don’t realize how much we missed until we retire and have gained some free time. Having an avocation such as photography may improve one’s awareness.

As a young child, I had a Brownie box camera or equivalent that I used until I graduated from college at age 22. I did not own a sophisticated, complex 35mm Nikon camera until the age of 36, at the insistence of my father-in-law, a talented professional photographer. He taught me how to use the camera and introduced me to the magic of the darkroom, where I learned the exacting process of developing and printing photographs. Prior to that time, like most people, my photos were usually of family, friends, or outings, with no thought other than documenting the places or events.

Art Class, Palais Royale, Paris, France © 2024 Stephen Rostand

Friends Meeting House, Sippewissett, Massachusetts © 2024 Stephen Rostand

Perhaps the first thing I learned in preparing for a photo session was to clear my mind of all the worldly thoughts impinging on my brain. Having the right frame of mind is essential for any activity. Next, learning how to see is essential. You come to realize that you are not an integral part of the action, rather you should try to be an unobtrusive observer of the scene, although not necessarily a passive one. Finding a subject to photograph and deciding when to photograph it requires more than a snap judgement (snapshot). It requires careful observation of the scene in all directions, including looking up and down (even the sky can be important), before even selecting a subject, be it the whole scene or some activity within it. Being aware of your surroundings and your place in them is critically important. As I discovered, I prefer to show the theater of life and urban vistas rather than large landscapes.

The Book Mill, Montague, Massachusetts © 2024 Stephen Rostand

Making a photo is more than capturing what you look at, even though it seems like pointing a camera is just a passive touristy pursuit. It is more about how it makes you feel. I had to learn how to answer the dreaded but important question, “Why did you take that photo?” It definitely helps to know why. But it is not what you look at that’s important, rather it is what you actually see. The camera and the act of photography make you see better and make you more aware of the life about you.

The final photograph reveals much about the photographer. The subject of the photograph is the choice of the person taking the photo—whether a portrait, street scene, or landscape. The viewer is seeing what the photographer saw, through their eyes, interpreted by their brain. The photographer is revealing how they feel about the slice-of-life that they have uncovered—its humor, beauty, ordinariness, or grandeur. The photo, or a series of photos of different subjects, often can involve the photographer emotionally, for the process from shooting the picture to making the final print is not passive. It requires insight in choosing the precise moment to take the photo—what to include and emphasize—in order to show what the image means to the photographer. In this regard, the photo is personal and reflects the photographer’s viewpoint, biases, style, and artistic sense. Thus, the photograph is the photographer and, conversely, the photographer is the photograph. Each photograph or grouping of images reveals an aspect of the photographer’s personality, and together with any written notations that may accompany the photos (as I have included in my photography books) is the equivalent of a memoir, or portrait, of the photographer.

Place Vendôme, Paris, France © 2007 Stephen Rostand

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Author photo © 2024 Stephen Rostand

Stephen Rostand is Professor of Medicine, Emeritus at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Born and raised in New York City and educated in Boston, he has been interested in photography since childhood. He has been an active photographer for the past sixty years, which has helped him see things from different perspectives and gain insights into people, the world, art, and himself.

Reflections from Henry Lodge

Front cover, oval image inspired by stained-glass transom windows in Joe and Lizzie Lodge’s living room

Henry Lodge of Lodge Manufacturing Company published Their Works Do Follow Them: A Biography of Joe and Lizzie Lodge with Modern Memoirs in 2026. This Commissioned Joint-Biography of his great-grandparents took 18 months to complete, including interviews with Lodge and two of his cousins, Leslie Lodge Davidson and Carolyn Millhiser, as well as research, writing, and full design and production services. We asked Lodge to reflect on what the publication process was like for him, and what it has meant to share the book with others.

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Henry Lodge is the former CEO and chairman of Lodge Manufacturing Company in South Pittsburg, Tennessee. In 1896 Lodge’s great-grandfather Joseph “Joe” Lodge founded the family business, known in the industry as Lodge Cast Iron. 130 years later, the company continues to thrive as a privately held business, with many of the descendants of Joe and his wife, Lizzie, working there or serving on the board of directors. The couple’s joint biography illuminates their fascinating backgrounds and tells the story of building a business, raising a family, and leaving an enduring legacy.

1. What inspired you to undertake this project when you did?

Henry Lodge: Several years prior to my retirement, I started thinking about what it meant that we had tons of data about Joe Lodge from before he ever founded the family company. He was born in Pennsylvania in 1848 and left home as a teenager in search of work, traveling in the United States before moving on to Cuba, Brazil, and Peru. He kept extensive journals and wrote many letters home, including correspondence with his former schoolteacher, Anna Elizabeth “Lizzie” Harvey, whom he eventually married. Even if he had stayed in Peru, his life would be a wonderful story. The fact that he started what is now Lodge Cast Iron, an internationally known name in cookware, deserved a full telling of Joe and Lizzie’s story.

2. There were already several books about Joe Lodge written or completed by Lodge family members. Why was it important to you to include Lizzie, his wife, in this volume?

Henry Lodge: Without Lizzie, Joe would have had less school learning and little reason to leave Peru. Without Lizzie cajoling him to “come home,” Joe’s offspring would likely have been of Peruvian descent. She was a huge part of Joe’s life and must have had a great effect on who he was and how he conducted his business. How could we tell his story without telling hers? Plus, Lizzie’s early life was as intriguing as Joe’s. Descended from Quakers, she earned an education degree at age seventeen and devoted herself to a teaching career that would last for over sixteen years, including two years at a school she helped establish. As one of my cousins points out in the book, Lizzie valued education, and her legacy made sure that the girls and women in our family had choices and opportunities.

3. In order to write the joint biography, Modern Memoirs conducted original research and was also greatly assisted by publications and interviews contributed by members of the Lodge family. Describe the “Lodge Family Council” and its role in preserving your family’s history.

Henry Lodge: I am a member of the 4th generation. I did not know Joe or Lizzie. I did know all the members of the following generation. Joe and Lizzie had two children, one who had seven children and one who had two. There are now roughly 150 family members, 70 of whom are shareholders in the company.

Today, only about a dozen descendants live within 100 miles of our company in South Pittsburg, Tennessee. We believe that it is important for the extended family to feel that they are part of the Joe and Lizzie Lodge story. The Family Council is our attempt to give all family members an opportunity to be involved in some way. Any descendant over the age of eighteen is eligible to serve. Members are elected for three-year terms and may serve two consecutive terms. The Council’s charge is to communicate, educate, and involve descendants to preserve the legacy of Joe and Lizzie Lodge. We also have an all-expense paid “Homecoming” every five years. We want all descendants to feel (and have) a connection with our company. We also want those folks scattered across the U.S. and beyond to have a chance to meet their cousins.

4. The Lodge family selected the title “Their Works Do Follow Them.” How do those words encapsulate Joe and Lizzie’s story?

Henry Lodge: That title, from Revelation 14:13 in the Bible, came out of a 1947 newspaper article about the ripple effect of Joe and Lizzie’s generous spirit. They set a very high bar regarding work ethic and how people should live together in love, harmony, and kindness. This book is one way we can say thank you to Joe and Lizzie for giving us the life that we have enjoyed and that has been so meaningful. If it weren’t for them, we wouldn’t be here—not just in terms of our biological descent but also as those who have benefitted from their example. We are grateful to carry on their company and all that they passed along to us.

5. The book was published in time for this year’s family reunion and celebration of the company’s 130th anniversary. Whom did you share the book with, and what response have you received from readers?

Henry Lodge: There was a great deal of excitement when the books were distributed at our 2026 reunion. We gifted a copy to every family unit and every individual living alone. Those who were not able to attend were mailed a copy. I hope that, as the family grows, we will have some books left on the shelf to pass along to the new members. As one of my cousins noted while the book was in development, we are very pleased to have pulled together the slew of information from the family, as well as to have gathered all the information Modern Memoirs uncovered and interpreted in its genealogical and historical research. It is a big book that was extremely well received.

Joe and Lizzie Lodge, 1927

Newspaper clipping from the 1980s showing Henry Lodge standing between his cousins Bob Kellermann (L) and Bill Kellermann (R), who also held leadership positions in the Lodge Manufacturing Company

Henry Lodge at the entrance to an exhibit in the Lodge Museum of Cast Iron, South Pittsburg, Tennessee

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Interested in learning more? The Wall Street Journal recently published an article about the Lodge family and their company, which readers can find here.

And if your family business would like to commission a corporate history or a biography of its founders, reach out to Modern Memoirs today. We are here to help!

Liz Sonnenberg is staff genealogist for Modern Memoirs, Inc.

Reflections from Anna Strobel

…and Her Brother, Bill Kingston

Anna Strobel published I Never Dreamed I’d Live on a Farm: My Life Memories with Modern Memoirs in 2025. This Assisted Memoir was commissioned by Anna’s brother, Bill Kingston, and took six months to complete. We asked Strobel and Kingston to reflect on what the publication process was like for them, and what it has meant to share her book with others.

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1. Anna, you were 90 years old when you undertook this project. What inspired you to write a memoir at that age?

Anna Strobel: One of my granddaughters wanted to know what it was like growing up during World War II.

2. Bill, what inspired you to help your sister create the book?

Bill Kingston: I saw how much effort she was putting into typing up memories and stories from her childhood, and I thought the collection deserved to be put in a form that would be a real keepsake for family and friends, and a legacy for future generations.

3. Anna, how did you pull the manuscript together? Did you have any earlier writings to draw from, or did you begin from scratch?

Anna Strobel: I had been making notes over the years as I recalled things about my childhood. I also kept a journal, and diaries from trips I had taken. Those were really helpful, as my thinking about the project evolved from just talking about my childhood to creating a full life history.

4. Bill, what did you learn about the publication process along the way?

Bill Kingston: I learned that creating a truly professional product is not just a matter of printing some documents. Illustrations such as the genealogical charts Anna included had to be created, and planning and placement of photos was key. Many of the older photos needed special processing in order to print properly. The assistance of Modern Memoirs in this process was invaluable.

5. Anna, did writing a memoir give you any new perspective on your life?

Anna Strobel: I have received very positive responses from both family and friends. The times I have heard “I never knew that!” are too numerous to count. I hope that those who have seen this book will be inspired to do the same for their families, as it provides a background that enriches relationships.

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Liz Sonnenberg is staff genealogist for Modern Memoirs, Inc.

Generations of a Name, Part II

OR Why Genealogy Is Important

Last month I wrote a blog about a ring that I gave my daughter. This ring was engraved with: OEM and MWW Apr 29, 1925. It was given to me by my grandmother, who received it somehow from a cousin, whose wedding ring it originally was. The reason we know this is that I consulted a crumpled paper copy of a family tree typed by a family member in the 1950s. It shows six generations of my maternal line. The two sets of initials on the inside of the ring match the names of two individuals in that family tree, and the date matches the marriage date also written in the family tree.

It so happens that after I described all that in my previous blog, a distant family member, let’s call him “D.,” contacted me by email. (I’m only using initials here.) Although I only see him but once in a blue moon and he lives in another state, come to find out he’s been reading Modern Memoirs’ blogs. Being one of the relatives on this family tree of my maternal line, he quickly deduced that the ring’s initials M.W.W. matched those of someone in his maternal line as well. He wrote to me how the “W.” name has been repeated down the line since his great-grandfather:

You probably don’t know that my second grandchild (age one) was named W. after my great-grandfather J.W.W. That fellow [hailing from Virginia, a Confederate soldier] was wounded in Pickett’s Charge at Gettysburg in the War Between the States. His life was apparently saved by an unknown Union cavalryman who ordered his men to lift him out of a puddle and set him up in the shade of a nearby tree. After the war, J.W.W. returned to his hometown in Virginia and fathered 10 children! One was my beloved mother’s father, T.L.W. We have a copy of J.W.W.’s manuscript of the action that day in Gettysburg.

Intriguing is an understatement. I consulted the family tree again and learned that D. is actually my grandmother’s cousin’s son, and I noticed some repetitions of the W. name down the generations. My rapid follow-up to his email: I’d love to read that handwritten account of Pickett’s Charge!

I don’t have much more to say than how valuable it is to write things down, not on a computer file that could be obsolete after some years or decades, but on paper, which can last centuries. Also, receiving my cousin's email made me realize how important it is to share family history with others. Although my daughter and I did some successful sleuthing on our own, turning genealogy into a collaborative effort can bring even greater rewards.

More to come… after I’ve read my relative’s handwritten account of Pickett’s Charge at Gettysburg, 163 years ago.

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Ali de Groot is director of publishing for Modern Memoirs, Inc.

Generations of a Name

Or, Why Genealogy Is Helpful

It’s a bit of a thrill when a daughter or son one day, seemingly out of the blue, takes an interest in family history, maybe asks you a little question like “Mama, where did this ring come from?”

I gave my daughter the ring over ten years ago. It was handed down to me by my grandmother over thirty years ago, and I don’t remember what she said about its origins. I probably wasn’t interested! For decades the ring sat in my jewelry box, a mystery.

It’s a very thin, unassuming band of what looks like silver with a delicate filagree pattern on the outside, and if you look very closely, you’ll see an engraving on the inside as well. OEM and MWW Apr 29, 1925.

My daughter read the initials in the engraving and of course asked who the people were. I had no clue. Luckily I remembered that I have a bunch of loose papers that serve as a family tree in the top drawer of an old dresser nobody uses. Someone on my grandmother’s side had taken the time decades ago to type out the names, birth dates, death dates, etc., etc.,  and here I had inherited a copy of a copy of a copy of it. We pored over the pages, trying to find the initials OEM or MWW somewhere in the seeming chaos of unfamiliar names covering six generations. After a while, we did find two names that matched the initials, with a marriage date of April 29, 1925. It was a wedding band! But who was this couple and how were they related to us? We carefully analyzed and traced the relationships to see how these two fit into my grandmother’s line. It didn’t take long to figure out that MWW was a first cousin to my grandmother.

I still have to wonder why my grandmother had her cousin’s wedding ring. I can only speculate. But reviewing the information on these worn pages led to a spontaneous exercise of attempting to memorize the key names in our matrilineal heritage, back to the 1800s. We found, not surprisingly, that there were frequent repetitions of names through the generations. Also, women often gave their maiden name as a middle name to their daughters (or sons). This seemed an interesting way for the family names, whether first, middle, or last, to be remembered down the generations. Of course I knew about this custom already, but it was noteworthy to see it spelled out in front of us.

My daughter has a sharp memory, and within a short time she could recite each couple’s names on her maternal side all the way back to the first couple on the list.

What would I have done without this family tree? The names and people would be lost over time. I feel happy and fortunate to have these pages in my possession, and they serve as a clear map back to my foremothers and forefathers.

Is there importance in holding on to the names? Yes! After all, they are not only names (and dates), but clues to entire life stories that are waiting to be investigated and shared. It does feel good to me to see these names, even though I’ve never thought or cared about whether someone will have my name in the future. It is nice to know that my daughter’s middle name is not only my late mother’s first name, but also my grandmother’s, great-grand-aunt’s, and great-great-grandmother’s first name. And so, we remember these women, forming links in a chain—like interconnected rings—joining the past and present.

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Ali de Groot is director of publishing for Modern Memoirs, Inc.

Reflections from Patricia Fuller

Patricia Ellen Redman Fuller published The Story of Us: A Redman–Nathanson Family History with Modern Memoirs in 2024. This Assisted Family History took four months to complete. We asked Fuller to reflect on what the publication process was like for her, and what it has meant to share her book with others.

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1. According to your book, you did not discover your passion for family history until you were in your 60s, after your parents’ deaths. What was it that sparked your interest at that time?

Patricia Fuller: After my father died in 2008 (my mother had died in 2007), I realized that I was now The Oldest Generation. Someone had to take responsibility for keeping the family legacy alive. At that time, I really knew very little about my ancestors. I decided to log onto Ancestry.com and start a family tree. When I entered a name, “hints” popped up from Ancestry’s myriad databases: records, documents, even newspaper articles. I was hooked! And the rest is (family) history!

2. Your book includes many stories about your immigrant grandparents and your parents’ younger years. How did you uncover that information if your parents were already gone?

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“Genealogy is all about connection…I know now that I am part of a large and dynamic system that will continue long after I am gone. It’s a very comforting feeling.”

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Patricia Fuller: I started with the bits and pieces I had gleaned from my parents and other relatives over the years. For example, years before, I had asked my parents what towns in Europe their ancestors had come from. My mother said “Kovno” and my father said “Karpinen.” At the time, those names meant nothing to me. For some reason, I wrote those two words down on an orange Post-It-Note which I kept in my wallet for years. When I decided to start my genealogical research, I found that note in my wallet, and that’s where I started!

3. What inspired you to have your siblings contribute chapters about their own families?

Patricia Fuller: I always planned to have a section on each of my siblings. When I started writing my sister Nancy’s section, it dawned on me that she knew much more about herself and her life than I did and could do a much better job. All of my siblings are wonderful writers, much better than I am. So, I asked them if they would write their own sections, and they all said yes. It allowed them to contribute to a book that was as much about them as it was about me. And I actually learned a lot about their lives that I had not known before!

4. The title, The Story of Us, conveys a connection between the lives of your ancestors and their descendants today. How would you describe that connection?

Patricia Fuller: Genealogy is all about connection, both horizontal and vertical. Through my genealogical research I have helped to uncover and preserve those connections. Horizontally, I have discovered cousins on all the branches of my tree that I never knew I had, and have brought them all together through e-mail lists and even a Zoom reunion in one case. Vertically, I have traced the branches of my family back to their roots in Eastern Europe and forward to the youngest generations all across America. I know now that I am part of a large and dynamic system that will continue long after I am gone. It’s a very comforting feeling.

5. For the cover of your book, you supplied a vintage postcard of a town in Lithuania where some of your family originated. What was your reaction to the resulting cover created by our Book Designer Nicole Miller?

Patricia Fuller: I was absolutely thrilled by the cover! It conveyed exactly what I was trying to convey, and it is beautiful! The color scheme even reflected the colors of the Lithuanian flag. I didn’t know the name of the designer, but now that I do, I would like to thank Nicole Miller (and the entire staff of Modern Memoirs) for transforming my vision into reality without ever even meeting me in person!

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Liz Sonnenberg is staff genealogist for Modern Memoirs, Inc.