A Heart Full of Precious Memories is a delightful glimpse into a mid 20th century girl's childhood from 1953 through 1965. From the first story relating to toddlerhood, Jilene Williams shares her rich love for life as she grabs your heartstrings and carries you through to her preteen years. She shares fun-filled facts, family foibles, faith, and stories of love, loneliness, and longing. Smiles follow sweet moments, laughter erupts, and gentle tears fall. Fearful encounters bring pounding hearts and knocking knees. She tells of the strengths and weaknesses she gained in life from those who influenced her most. Her Grandma, teachers, a choir director, leaders, and pastors are named in the list of those who inspired her and to whom she is most grateful. Her first awareness of God causes you to contemplate her observations, and the foundation for her childlike faith is laid. Contrastingly, life is not always blue skies and pink roses. Still, the little girl shares these moments with discernment and sensitivity. Jilene was born in St. Louis, Missouri. She tells of her home in Wellston on the corner of a high traffic four-lane boulevard and a two-lane avenue. Streetcars bustle one block east while trains run on the tracks below the viaduct one block to the west. Evenings and Sundays offer respite to the clamor. Living in the area for ten years, she is well acquainted with her community. She gladly takes the reader in tow with her as soon as she can cross the street on foot with her mom. Your mind is filled with sites, scents, sounds, and flavors while running errands with her mom or dad and her sisters. The tales are sometimes serious and other times cause countless giggles. The Lutheran church and school she attends are in a community westward named Pagedale. Their halls and grounds come alive as you can almost imagine you are by her side. Girl Scouts activities and softball games add another dimension. She cannot leave you without knowledge of entertainment and recreational activities during those years. You will either recollect or get an introduction to party lines, dial telephones, formica dinettes, metal kitchen cabinets, hi-fi record players, black and white televisions, home movie setups, and much more that rarely exists outside an old movie or museum. A healthy list of television shows, movies, and music during those times convey what she and her family enjoyed in those days. Distant relatives and desired vacations bring a bonus to Jilene's narrative. Travel destinations include Arkansas, Nebraska, Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, and Tennessee. Niagara Falls provides both wonder and humor to the family. Washington, D.C., the Shenandoah Parkway, and the Blue Ridge Mountains are on the itinerary. Did I mention the New York World's Fair or the Gateway Arch in St. Louis? If you are looking for a light-hearted and fun book that will visit the life of a child from the "baby boomer" generation living in the mid-western United States, A Heart Full of Precious Memories is a marvelous experience. The story often opens cobwebbed closet doors in your memories as you find yourself thinking, "I remember... and that reminds me of..." What fun, what a treasure to relive your younger days while reading about the author's childhood! Even readers born after her generation appreciate stories related to their parents' and grandparents' early years. As a companion guide, A Heart Full of Precious Memories Reflections Journal is a free downloadable PDF linked in the book's front matter. It allows the reader to jot down their memories tickled in the journey. You are in for a fine time! A Heart Full of Precious Memories is available in ebook, print, and large print forms. Plans for the audible version are anticipated by early 2021. The second volume, also planned for 2021, will cover the years 1965 and on.