Authors:Raymond M. Saunders and Craig Saunders

ISBN: 1418445843

This interview was conducted by:  E.Dian Moore &  To read more about Dian Moore’s reviews click HERE

To read Dian's review of the book CLICK HERE

Dian from BookPleasures (BP):Raymond M. Saunders is now 95 years old, a retired Iowa farmer who still lives on the farm where he was born. He began writing this story in 1989 and completed it in 2003 with the assistance of his son Craig, shortly before completely losing his sight to glaucoma.

 An amazing achievement in itself is Saunders’ 70+ years of marriage to the same woman. He lists his greatest accomplishments as his four sons and his wife. One of those sons, Craig M. Saunders, M.D., helped his father complete the memoir after his father lost his sight. Craig now serves as the Chair of the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery at the Heart Hospital of New Jersey.

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BP:  As a student of genealogy, I was thrilled to come across BLESSED. I’ve had the opportunity to read many memoir/family history books, but nothing quite like this. This book touched so many chords in me that I plan to keep it around for reference, inspiration and lessons to apply to life.  

The book was released in November of 2004, and at that time, you were 94 years old. Now, at 95, how are you doing today?

R. Saunders: Doing fairly well, considering I broke my leg just before Christmas, I'm just so damned grateful I'm not a horse. 

BP:  What projects are going on in your life today after the publication of the book?

R. Saunders: Mainly just visiting, talking and planning with family and friends.  The book has put me back in touch with a lot of friends I haven't heard from in some time.  But also I need to ensure that anyone in our family who wants to follow in my footsteps on this land, can. 

BP:  You have given your family a precious gift in this personal accounting of your family’s history as observed through your eyes. For me, history came alive and I felt as if I could hear you speaking, sitting at the kitchen table over apple pie and iced tea. What did you enjoy the most about documenting your family history?

R. Saunders: Keeping them alive.  Spanning the generations.  Allowing my great grandchildren a glimpse into the lives of my great grandparents.  It's important that we know of the lives, the work and the sacrifices others have endured to allow us the life we have today. 

BP:  Many of your family’s experiences have been both tragic and character building at the same time. Your mother was a woman of great foresight, and throughout the story, I was struck by the lessons you learned from her. What is one of your favorite memories of your mother?

R. Saunders: When I was young, I helped more in the kitchen than in the barn. My favorite memory would be getting up and helping mother cook or bake cookies but the most important fact was that she was always there with a helping hand.  There was never a time I couldn't sit down and talk to her, she was always there, right up to that last afternoon. 

BP:  If you could do anything differently in your life, looking back with hindsight, what would that thing be?

R. Saunders: I wish I had learned to dance. I wish I would have taken Trudy dancing . . . she would have liked that. I'll have to wait now and dance with her in heaven. 

BP:  It’s not often a person is able to live on the same piece of property their entire life, especially for over 90 years. The family property where you still reside has remained in your family for many years and it has taken on its own character throughout the book. Living that long in a certain location must ingrain in your character the rhythms of the seasons, the ebb and flow of the land, and it comes across in your story your respect for the land. What advice would you like to leave for future generations as they connect with the land of their ancestors?

R. Saunders: Look after it. Tend the waterways and the terraces, make the land better tomorrow than it was yesterday. Take care of the land and it will take care of you. 

BP:  Now that the book has been published, are there any areas you would like to elaborate on; or that you have had a nagging reminder of “oh, I should have put that in?”

R. Saunders: I should have put in more recent items, though it is true our memories increase in value with age, we often fail to see the value and importance of our everyday lives. 

BP:  What do you consider your greatest accomplishment in your personal life, one that has been lived long and well and full of hard work and family ties?

R. Saunders: Woody Allen said 80% of life is just showing up. My greatest accomplishment has been greeting the sunrise every day for 94 years, even though I can't see it now, I look forward to it every day and through it all is my wife of 70 years and four boys.  As my grandfather said of his sons,  "I do not think the sun ever shown on four better ones - though it might have on one." 

BP:  Though your dream to become a doctor was not fulfilled, please know that your words in this simple volume are expressions to be cherished and learned from, the words of a teacher made wise through experience. In your own unique way, you have, with this story, brings understanding to descendants of children of the Depression era, and that in itself is an indication of the healer heart within you.

Please feel free to leave us with a comment or two or three of life lessons learned that in your experience could make or break a man and woman and/or his family.  

R. Saunders: That's a tough one and comes with lots of responsibility but perhaps one of the most important things to remember is just as the actions of our ancestors affected who and what we are today, so our actions today will shape all future generations.  We all have that responsibility, daily, not just Presidents and educators but every single one of us. It is thus our challenge to face these tasks and to live our lives with as much grace and dignity as humanly possible.

Questions for Craig Saunders:   

BP:  Craig Saunders, one of Raymond’s four sons, did become a doctor, and he helped put together this volume of lasting value for future generations of the world.

What is the greatest lesson you have learned through your father’s recounting of his life? 

C. Saunders: Well, first, I think I have learned that I have become my father. I would take one of his thoughts, write a few pages and read it back to him. He'd slam his fist in his hand and say "Your damned right." and we would go on. I'm not sure I can tell anymore what he wrote and what I wrote but it doesn't make any difference, we pretty much agree.

I think, though, the greatest lesson is what he just said.  Our actions today are creating the memories and affecting the lives of our children and grandchildren.  It is an awesome responsibility.

BP:  What plans are in place for the continuance of Cumberland Farm II?

C. Saunders: My brother Doug has taken Dad's place on the farm - he has three sons of his own.  We are working now to ensure the legacy can continue.

BP:  Do you have plans to continue this legacy with your own memoir, picking up where your father left off?  

C. Saunders: Well, if I follow my father's pattern I have another 20 years before I have to make that decision.

BP:  What legacy do you wish to build to continue the Saunders’ family saga?

C. Saunders: Family values.

Closing comments from interviewer:

BP:  Thank you for sharing your story with the world. What started out as a legacy set in writing for your children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren has become a rich tapestry of a life lived in hard work, good values and faith in God. The world certainly needs more books of this type and it’s one I recommend to readers as a guide to understanding the value of family and raising children to become responsible adults. Through shared experience, we can all learn valuable life lessons if we absorb the gift you have left with the world.  

In closing, I wish your first dance with Trudy is one of grace and joy and the culmination of a great romance.