"Fond Recollections of small town living...The best place in the world to call home." Memory as a River is from the very heart of its author, Virginia Midgett Richardson and is the true story of the joys, sorrows, fun and advantages of being reared in a true American small town or village, as one would call this riverside place she loves so much. All who know and love small towns will recognize the folks who were neighbors and friends even though they will be different. Too, others who only know the city life will catch a glimpse of why we love the place we hold in our hearts as always being home...Where everyone knows our name and is always there to lend a helping hand. Because of her loving and patient mother, Virginia learned to read and write before she started school. Almost from the time she could hold a pencil, she wanted to put her thoughts and feelings into words. She won a small prize in the first grade by writing a little poem and from then on, she tried to put all she saw and heard into rhyme or short prose and later on, had many of these published in the local newspapers Reared in the small fishing village of Sneads Ferry near the southeastern coast of North Carolina, Virginia paid special attention to the stories of the fishermen who made their living from the river and ocean, These included her grandfather, father, brothers, many cousins and others. She listened with fascination to tales of big catches, violent storms which often caught them by surprise and other stories. However, she loved poetry so much that her stories usually came out in rhyme and were mostly about the river she loved so much.
About the Author: After graduation from high school, Virginia began writing song lyrics and after many failures, finally had a song published and recorded. It did not go too well but in the early 50s, a new country music artist recorded one on Capitol Records that was played on the radio often. Later, she had several more recorded and two did very well. One, A Lifetime Isn't Long Enough, recorded by Faron Young is still on the computer with several favorable comments. After marriage, Virginia moved with her husband, Ray to his little home near Roanoke, Virginia. Here, with time on her hands, she began writing verses for greeting cards and in the process, found much satisfaction and real success.