Features
Related Photos
Woman’s story featured in Chicken Soup book
Every time Zionsville resident Judy Miller looks at a chest in her home, she thinks of her mother, Lizzie.
“I am flooded with memories of her,” Miller said.
Lizzie died 12 years ago. Besides remembering her mother with the chest, Miller will also remember her every time she looks at the “Chicken Soup for the Soul: Thanks Mom,” the most recent of the Chicken Soup books, because Miller’s story, “The Chest,” was featured in the book.
Miller has lived in Zionsville for the past 14 years. She is a non-fiction writer who writes parenting, teen and adoption pieces. She also teaches education for adoptive parents online. Besides these regular gigs, Miller was looking for something national to write for and heard Chicken Soup had a call out for stories last summer. She found out in January that her story would be included in the most recent Chicken Soup book.
“I was thrilled when I found out because (the books) are very difficult to get in to,” she said. “I submitted it and forgot about it, and when I heard from them, I was thrilled. It’s a great credit to have and good exposure for me as a writer.”
Miller’s story is about a hope chest Lizzie bought during an annual summer trek in a suburb of Chicago when she was in college. The chest accompanied Miller through graduate school and state to state when she moved for various job opportunities, but Lizzie told her to use it as a hope chest. Since then, she had used the chest to store items when she was getting ready to be married, and to keep baby clothes while she was getting ready for the births of her children. Miller said she still has the chest, which holds all of her treasures. She also plans on passing it down to one of her children, she said.
“The story wasn’t difficult to write because one day I just happened to be sitting down doing something else and looked over the chest and remembered my mother,” she said.
Miller’s story was one of 101 featured in the book. Wendy Walker, editor of the Chicken Soup book, said she went through thousands of entries. The process was competitive she said, but thought Miller’s story would be perfect for the book.
“I chose ‘The Chest’ because it captured the essence of the mother-daughter relationship,” Walker said. “A mother has been through the stages of life the daughter will soon pass, and yet for the daughter to pass through them, she must separate from her mother. So here we had this mother knowing what would be important to her daughter years down the road.”
Walker added, “It is also a beautifully written story. Clear and simple but written in a way that lets the love between mother and daughter shine through.”
Miller says she loved being published and sharing her story.
“Words are really powerful and to use them in a good way is really great,” she said. “Hopefully this story will lift other people up. My mom would be so proud of me because this piece was dedicated to her.”
- Features
-
-
Shine on
The event raised more than $10,000 for the Alzheimer’s Association. To donate, visit http://memorywalk10.kintera.org/indianapolis/lacyslightsamy, go to Akard True Value Hardware,
75 Boone Village Shopping Center or mail to Alzheimer's Association Greater Indiana Chapter,
50 E. 91st St. Indianapolis , IN 46240. Put “Lacy's Lights” or Z’Sparkle Party and Drag Race” for the donation to count towards the event.
-
A very important peoples carnival evening
Libby Powell and her buddy Jackson Bullington stumbled down the Zionsville Community High School hallway both shoved into a single 6XL bright yellow Best Buddies T-shirt.
-
Riders of the storm
“When they get rain, they get rain,” Greg Lacy said about his 40-day trip to Alaska this summer.
Lacy and his two fellow riders, Tom Smith and Jim Thurgood, took their motorcycles along state roads all the way from Indianapolis to Alaska, roughly 10,300 miles.
-
Creating change in the city
Being a landlord is never an easy job, but being the landlord of several houses and apartments in low-income areas is much more complicated.
-
Ice cream social and pep rally
-
Let them ride
Horses pranced and feet stomped in anticipation as riders prepared to embark on the 33rd annual Traders Point Hunt Grand Prix. With a series of jumps as tall as six feet, both riders and horses faced an intense challenge in afternoon heat on Sunday, Aug. 15.
-
Good old fashion fun
Maplelawn Farmstead Inc.’s, a non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation of a historic farmstead depicting the 1930’s era, second annual Movies at Maplelawn event was Friday, Aug. 13, and Saturday, Aug. 14, at the Maplelawn Farmstead.
-
Garden party draws crowd despite heat
Yellow ones, pink ones, parrot-shaped ones.
All types of hats sat atop ladies’ heads as they gathered for the 14th annual Garden Party Luncheon, Thursday, Aug. 12, at the Traders Point Charity Horse Show, which has benefited Riley Hospital for Children for six years now.
-
Back to school
-
Just dance
- More Features Headlines
-
