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Overcomers Approach
“The Overcomers Approach” podcast showcases stories of resilience, where individuals transcend challenges to achieve personal and professional success. With a focus on spiritual, mental, emotional, physical, and financial growth, the podcast inspires listeners to embrace their potential and thrive in all areas of life. Join us to learn how overcoming adversity can lead to evolution, healing, and lasting success.
Overcomers Approach
Inspiring conversation with Roni Robbins on preserving family legacy, transforming personal stories into fiction, and embracing resilience through storytelling
What if a simple cassette tape could bridge generations and change the course of your family history? Join us as award-winning novelist and journalist Roni Robbins reveals how her grandfather's recordings became the foundation for her novel "Hands of Gold." Through this fascinating discussion, you'll discover the incredible story of resilience and survival that shaped Ronnie's family, and how the Holocaust and a groundbreaking medical trial intersected to save a life. We celebrate the importance of preserving family stories and using them as powerful tools for overcoming life's challenges.
Roni opens up about the delicate art of transforming personal family tales into fictional narratives. She shares her experiences with navigating family feedback, balancing authenticity with privacy, and the responsibility of portraying real people in fiction. As a seasoned journalist turned novelist, Ronnie discusses how her background in factual storytelling laid the groundwork for crafting a novel that resonates with universal themes. Our conversation highlights the transformative power of storytelling in fostering growth and understanding within families and communities.
In our exploration of Roni's authorial journey, we delve into the meticulous research required to ensure historical accuracy while embracing the creative liberties of fiction. Roni candidly discusses overcoming imposter syndrome and choosing traditional publishing to validate her work. This episode is a testament to the enduring themes of love, family, and resilience, demonstrating how the past can inform and empower our present and future. Tune in to learn more about Roni's work, her insights on family legacy, and the strength we inherit from those who came before us.
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Good day everyone. This is Nicole Ellis McGregor, the founder of the Overcomers Approach podcast, a podcast where we meet with people from different walks of life, different histories, different backgrounds, different cultures, different experiences authors, life coaches, people in the financial field. The overarching theme is those that we're all overcomers, no matter what we have experienced in life, and we have people who have examples, whether it's lived experience, whether it's writing in literary form, whether it's fiction or nonfiction. The power of storytelling is something that is so powerful and impactful and I'm so happy that I have Ronnie Robbins here today. She's an award-winning novelist writer and she's written a book that documents nearly four decades. She has nearly four decades as a published writer, a staff reporter for the daily and weekly newspapers, a freelance national and regional and online publications. She's currently a freelance reporter for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Medscape slash WebMD, where she previously worked as an editor after serving as an associate editor of the Atlantic Jewish Times.
Speaker 1:Robyn's articles have appeared in the Huffington Post, Forbes, the New York Daily News, adweek, webmd and Healthline. She was a staff writer for Florida Today, usa Today, the Birmingham News, Adweek, webmd and Healthline. She was a staff writer for Florida Today, usa Today, the Birmingham News and Atlanta Business Chronicle, american City Business Journals. She also wrote for Mother Nature Network Daily Report, american Lawyer Media, the Forward from the Grapevine and Hadash Magazine, among others. There's so many more things that she's done and I am just so impressed with the work that she's done and I'm so honored that she's taken up space to tell us about her novel, that she's written Hands of Gold and what really inspired her to write this book, and she's an award winner. So she's obviously done an amazing job with this book. It has impacted us globally and I know that she has so much more to tell us about it. Welcome, ronnie, I'm so happy to have you here today.
Speaker 2:Thank you for that warm introduction. I appreciate it. It's a lot to go over.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I believe giving people their flowers and their accolades, and I know that the journey I'm sure there was pivots and turns in the journey, but the fact that you're still here and that you're still doing amazing work and getting the information out to so many other people that need to know and want to know, and we really appreciate it, ronnie. What inspired you to write this book, ronnie? What inspired you to?
Speaker 2:write this book. So my grandfather left cassette tapes. Remember, remember cassette tapes? Yes, I do. I don't even know if you're old enough to remember them, but yeah, yes, my grandfather left cassette tapes of his life and I listened to the tapes. My, my mom gave me the tapes, I listened to them, I transcribed them.
Speaker 2:At first I wrote a column for the local paper and about leaving your legacy behind as something you can leave your family, leave it to your progeny, and how important that is to record your family histories and know your family histories. And then I decided there was so much more that I couldn't say in a column. It wasn't just about leaving your memories behind. It wasn't just about leaving your memories behind. It was about this romance that my grandparents had. It was about my grandfather being a clinical trial patient for streptomycin, which is still used today to treat tuberculosis, which saved his lives and countless others.
Speaker 2:It was losing your whole entire family in the Holocaust. And what is that like when you are here in America, safe, but to hear about the tragedy going on where you left, where you might have perished also. So there was, and there was, a few other little tidbits that I thought were so very dramatic Raising a family, being the breadwinner of a family as a woman, when women did not do that at that time, because her husband had health issues in and out of rehabilitation, had health issues in and out of rehabilitation, a workplace shooting spree and losing a son. There's so many different parts of the life of somebody, the life of this person who happened to be my grandfather, that I felt I could share with the world and teach them something about perseverance and, as you say, overcoming obstacles, overcoming adversity.
Speaker 1:Yes, ronnie, I just love the aspect of the cassette tapes which I do definitely remember and I believe that that information is so very important to document it, to actually hear it and then to even dive deeper, to go into more specifics of life's history and your family's history and what it took to persevere during that time and to overcome and to deal with the trauma of what the Holocaust, that happening and how it impacts your family historically and how we must never forget and how that impacts us in present day. I just consider it an honor and it's such a role model for you to take on that task, to write that experience and allow us to step into your world, to share it and to give us that information to inspire us, to encourage us, to empower us to also do the same things, if we're able to. I think that's just incredible. If we don't know our history, we must never forget, we really won't know where we're going and it can repeat itself in some spaces it has in some ways and so to keep that voice going, I think it is such a courageous thing for you to do so.
Speaker 1:Thank you, ronnie, for you to do so. Thank you, ronnie. I know what your grandfather. He seemed like such an impactful man in your life and, I'm sure, in other lives, and I'm just so inspired. You said that he was treated for a trial. And for what was that again?
Speaker 2:I'm just really Tuberculosis which is actually the largest infectious disease killer in the world. Still, we thought pandemic was. You know, we thought COVID was. But COVID may have gotten headlines for a while, but tuberculosis remained and is all over the world Still the largest killer. You know more than it was always there but we didn't pay attention to it for a little while. So people thought it disappeared. But it did not. It was there in the background and so he was a test case, a clinical trial patient for a experimental treatment at that time. But that treatment saved his life, saved other lives and also is still used today and it paved the way for the modern medicine that is used today still to treat tuberculosis.
Speaker 2:And I just wrote about that for the local paper. So I do know that that is truth. And I asked my sources about the streptomycin and they said, yeah, that was a game changer back then and my grandfather was part of that. So there are very real historical references. But the story is fiction because I made up a lot of stuff also to make it more dramatic, oh for sure All the names.
Speaker 1:Yes, no, I could definitely see that and I think this is definitely going to be helpful for some of my listeners who are pivoting in terms of what they're doing with writing and from nonfiction to fiction. I have a niece who's an author and so she writes fiction but definitely take components of nonfiction into her writing as well. So that's a great example and just educational for me in terms of, like the medical space and tuberculosis. You hear and read a lot, but if you don't dig a little deeper and if you don't really advocate and do the research, then you're just going to take in with some of the information that we may receive. So that is good to know and I'm very grateful for your grandfather being able to take the trial to impact thousands, probably millions of lives globally for tuberculosis. So, wow, that is a great legacy to leave. He not only left it for his family, but he left it for others. Yes, yes.
Speaker 2:And I'm a health care reporter too. So, as it turned out, life is just weird that way, but I didn't start out as a healthcare reporter but, I am a healthcare reporter now, in more recent years, so I always say that it's ironic and irony is part of my name. So life is very amazing, how the twists and turns of our own lives of my grandfather's life, of my grandparents' lives, of my own life, of our own lives, how things work out.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, I agree, I agree. I say nothing happens by mistake, you know. And so things divinely happen for a reason or purpose, maybe at the moment we don't understand, but divinely brings the spaces that we're supposed to be in. So, yeah, I totally, totally agree with that. And so why do you think it's so important for people to value the recording of their family history? Why do you think that is important for people to do that, or to acknowledge that, or to be aware of that?
Speaker 2:I think you said some of this if we don't learn from history, we're doomed to repeat it. Yeah, or maybe that's not just a nice saying, so I will say it this way I think you can learn more about yourself from knowing where you came from. I think I learned a lot about myself through my grandparents' story of perseverance, and you know, I never I didn't go through half of what they went through back then. So our lives are sort of blessed because they paved the way. Those that went before paved the way for our freedoms and blessings, and the fact that we can, though, see if they can do it, if they can go through what they went through, why do we have to be complaining about what we go through? And I think it puts it in perspective that you think you're going through a hard time, but you ain't going through a hard time. You don't know hard times, you know, so you have it good.
Speaker 2:You may not have it as good as others, but you have it pretty good compared to what others would have. I think if you don't have a health issue, I think you are blessed for life. Those that have to go through health issues or war and lose family in war, I mean and I'm not saying we're not losing people in war right now, we are. But we can learn a lot about ourselves from studying the past, especially in our own family, and I think it's some of it let's hope that some of it is genetic that we can persevere beyond what we think we can.
Speaker 2:We have the capacity to do that.
Speaker 1:Yes, very good point. I love the fact that you said you know, we can learn a lot about ourselves by learning our history. And then also, just, you know, sometimes we think we have it really, really tough. But if we go back and look at history, there was so much more that went on that we're we don't we're not impacted in that way and that we have so many blessings that we experience right now.
Speaker 1:And if we could just reflect back on that family history, I think it'll give us a real sense of gratitude uh, you know what, how blessed we are. Also a sense of gratitude of what they went through, you know, and and really understanding that and and realizing that we're still very much connected to them and there's parts of us that are very much like them that show up now. But I think the more we see that or read that or hear that history whether it's oral, written through a cassette I think the more empowered we'll be and the more we'll know our identity, you know who we are. I think that really solidifies and gives us more confidence as people. So I really appreciated that. How did your family react when you wrote the book? What did you get any feedback or how did that go?
Speaker 2:So majority are happy with the book. So majority are happy with the book. I would say 99.9, because there was one person that wasn't so happy about it because it is her own family story.
Speaker 2:The others that I thought might react in a certain way, to some of the potentially dirty laundry that I exposed, said it's fiction, right, and I said absolutely so. It just depends on how you feel about things, how you feel about how I portrayed your family member and whether you can see it as fiction or if it feels too real. Then I understand there are sensitivities, because I am exposing a personal story by trying to keep it real and doing something with a story, a person's life that I felt was important to share with others as an example of of an everyday man's journey, but somebody who made a difference in the world. So I'm I do feel like that. There were some sensitive sides of the story and I might not have portrayed everyone you know as a perfect, you know angel.
Speaker 1:I love that feedback because I think that's something that some authors struggle with and something that I've written. One book it was just, you know, I got that one out the way, you know, and so part of it was semi-autobiographical. But but the the some, I wanted to be really careful because you know family members and, um, you know, some may feel exposed, and so I really liked the take on, you know, nonfiction of fiction, you know, like you know. So I think that it gives a sense of protection as well.
Speaker 1:But I think there's something to be said for authenticity and if we just changed our perspective and like airing things out, really it's just about, you know, walking in our truth, transparency and how many other families may have very similar situations going on, but they are, it's in secrecy or there's some shame to it. But the more we can talk about it and have those courageous conversations and documentation of that, the more that we can free ourselves to live truly authentically and knowing that we're not perfect. We all have some flaw, you know, and we're just trying to walk this journey and to get it right. And I feel like the more transparent we are, the more we can just evolve and grow for the betterment of not only like our families individually, but our communities as well. So I you know I appreciate you taking that risk and I'm glad the majority really appreciated it and was okay with it.
Speaker 1:But I it's always nice to know, like, how families feel, and that's a conversation that I have with other writers too. So I loved your spit and taking it, so I know I will be impacted and appreciate that as well. So how did you navigate transitioning from journalist to author, from nonfiction to fiction? How did that transition go, or how did you navigate that?
Speaker 2:It was not easy, but I tried to pull all of my experience as a journalist and use the facts as the basis for the novel. So the scaffolding, the blueprint, the basics were factual and then I played with the facts, which is not something you get to do as a journalist. But I had the recordings, which were the interview, which is like an interview that I might have with somebody. So I had the recording and so I use that. But I had to make up a lot of dialogue. I mean, I don't know how people interacted with each other. I don't know how my grandparents might have interacted, how other people interacted with them. So that part the diet, making up dialogue was very challenging. But, um, you know my research skills. Uh, I wanted it to be historically accurate, so I took pains to make sure of that, that no readers would come to me and say, well, that didn't happen or that's not, or that's not how they talk back then, or you know.
Speaker 2:So I really took a lot of time to make sure I got it right and um and uh it it like I said, it wasn't easy, the dialogue was the hardest part, but I feel like that it is very historically accurate or because I used all my journalism skills and my all my nonfiction skills, so you might say that this is literary nonfiction in essence. I'll just go back and tell you that many of the family members said that feels very authentic. That feels like how he would have talked. That feels like and I didn't know this about our family. I had family come out of the woodwork like cousins I didn't even know existed, come and say, hey, I heard you wrote about this person. I'm related this way to you.
Speaker 2:I read your book, I loved him, I loved them, them. They were great, very influential. You know they're uh, you know they were the matriarchs and patriarchs of the time, so of of those that are more in my generation, so and older, uh, so they, I, they felt it was, it was authentic, and I think that's important. And people other readers also said, like you said, this family could have been my family. I have an uncle that was a tailor or a shoemaker or drove a trolley.
Speaker 2:I remember when my grandparents were like that or my parents did exactly the same thing. So my family becomes every ethnic family's, every minority, every ethnic family's family.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:Change the names, put in a little of your culture and it's the same people, Right.
Speaker 1:That's right and I love that because I really value that there's so many similarities. Once you really sit down and have conversations or read a book, we're more similar than different. We have our differences and those are amazing and those are here for a divine purpose and reason. I think brings us and what people are looking for is a sense of connection and a sense of understanding that, no, you're not the only family you know and you don't have to feel so isolated, and so I love that. Like you said, just change it a little bit here and there and it could be very, very similar. That and I think that's probably why your book won the award because people have seen themselves, they've seen their community, they've seen their family in that book in some ways and capacities, and I think that that really brought it alive. So I definitely agree with you on that one. How are the? Are the rules different writing as a journalist versus writing as an author versus writing as an author?
Speaker 2:The rule you mean as a fiction author or just in general?
Speaker 1:Just in general, yeah, Okay yeah, so it's two things.
Speaker 2:The rules are different. Yes, there are some things that I had to learn how to do, like spell out numbers. Or you know, we don't, we just use numbers, we don't spell. There's a lot of spelling out of things. You know E-L-E-V-E-N, you know I was. Or you know H-U-N-D-R-E-D, you know we don't. That that's not thousands has to be spelled, so this was. That's just one example that I noted there are.
Speaker 2:That's a big one for me, you know, in that it's fiction versus nonfiction, that's huge, you're, you wouldn't. If you write fiction as a journalist, you know that's fake, right? That's fake. That's what they say. Fake news is you know that it's not. You know the facts. That's right so playing with the facts is it gives you a lot of freedom. I you know I like the structure of facts facts.
Speaker 2:So it's a little scary to make up things and, and you know, but you use your imagination and you know it is a little freeing to not have to worry about that. It didn't exactly happen that way. You know, you don't want to get, I don't want to get too far afield of that, because it's a safety net for me. Uh, and I and I wanted it to be true to life, true to the life at that time. But so, um, you know, I had a lot of trepidation about putting the book out there. This was a whole new area for me, you know. So I had a lot of imposter syndrome experiences about, okay, you're a journalist, you've been published by major publications, great for you but you're not an author. You know what are you doing? You're taking a huge, big risk and I was, and I might be averse to a risk, you know, but you're taking a big chance putting yourself out there. So it took me a long time and I wanted to do it right. So I held out for a traditional publisher.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:I mean I'm sort of glad I did because it meant that it was screened in some way um picked through you know good enough, bad enough good or bad?
Speaker 2:That's a terrible thing to say because you know of the Holocaust, but um but basically I wanted somebody to say this is worth publishing, so if I put it out there myself and there's nothing wrong with self-publishing and they probably make a lot more money doing it that way but I wanted to see if I could get somebody to say it's good, now I put my, I'm going to back you.
Speaker 2:I'm going to help you get it out there, and I'm going to support you, and so I to help you get it out there and I'm going to support you. And so I held out for that and it took a long time.
Speaker 1:Awesome. Well, there's something to be said for enduring and resilience and, like you said, waiting for that publisher, that it gives a certain level of accountability to kind of you know. There's something to be said for self publishing A lot of people are doing that but there's something also to be said when you wait out for that solid publisher that you're looking for to give you the quality that you're looking for, and you know kind of checks and balances. So I could definitely see your perspective. Something that really stood out for me is that you experienced, as you know, as much as you've accomplished. You experienced imposter syndrome, just you know, stepping out and being an author. How did you overcome that? Or what did you do?
Speaker 2:What are some techniques that you use, or what did that feel or look like? I think that the when I won my first award in 2009 for this book. For the beginning of the book, I felt like that was I got an. Okay, I got a. You know what it's good, it's good, it's ready, and I waited for that. I entered the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award contest, which doesn't exist anymore. Several times before I won that, I also needed somebody to say yes, yes, but is still yes.
Speaker 1:Yes.
Speaker 2:Yes, but so I got a few. Yes, but I'm not going to take it on.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:Yes, but I'm not the right publisher. And so they weren't the right publisher because they were here in Georgia or they didn't feel like that it fit with the rest of their books that they published. So you know, any bit of yes was what I thought. I needed somebody to say you know what this is, this is really worth something. And then I but no, I don't know that I ever I'm not sure I even people had to say you are an author as soon as you wrote the book and I was like, really Really, um, you, know I still don't feel like exactly an author, but it gets easier as it, you know, after it gets published and everything.
Speaker 2:I was so afraid that I lost my first publisher. I got cold feet towards the end of we were almost to the finish line and then I was like, what if somebody sues me? What if my family sues me? So I opened the gates to concern about what do you mean? Who's going to sue you? No, you know, thankfully nobody. But but I didn't know that and I wanted some protection for myself about that and that scared away the first publisher.
Speaker 2:The second publisher was like they'll sue you, not me, so I'm, we're going for this. And they took a big chance. You know, I realized they were taking a chance on me. But too, but they were, they were willing to. And so when I had so many rejections, so that I started to read them, even when I got a yes, I was like OK, no, Wait, wait, what? Wait, what you know you do like me, you know so. I was so, you know, used to it. It was like next, next, next, and then when it finally came, I didn't. I was in a little bit of shock and almost read negative when there was positive. So so no, I I guess I could have used. I've gotten more confidence since it's been published and since I got the second one, but it's, it's very disheartening when you, when you, work so hard on something and then somebody says no.
Speaker 1:Right, I totally can relate, and I'm sure my listeners can too, and there's something to be said for just not giving up. You didn't you know and there's something to be said for even experience that imposter syndrome that there was some rejection, there was a lot of rejection and then you started to get some yeses and you're going to get a yes like the yes is coming. But you held out for the yeses and even when you got the yes, you know you said you would read some of the negative, but still your confidence continues to grow and you're showing us that this is really still a journey. But you know, you know the great thing is that the book is out in the universe now. People are getting it. You won an award and I'm sure it's going to continue to elevate your confidence as well.
Speaker 1:But I so appreciate just your transparency and honesty with that. You know, because I think other people, if they're writing a book or if they're transitioning, they're still in the same field but they're doing maybe something a little different, and you know what does that look like and feel like? I think you know what do you feel? Do you feel that European history compares? How does it compare with the world events today. Do you think that? I know that's kind of a loaded question, but just kind of incorporating what you wrote about the book and being a journalist, what are your observations?
Speaker 2:So we still have some of the issues that I discussed in my book Antisemitism, let's just say hatred. Let's just say hatred of the other, somebody who's different. There's still not a lot. There's still not enough acceptance of people's differences. Let's just go that way, okay now larger picture.
Speaker 2:There was fighting between Russia and the Ukraine back when my grandfather was in Europe growing up and he has a line in the book. I did not make this up, russia just seems to like to fight. So they were fighting back then with Ukraine. That whole area was changing. Changing whole area was changing authority, who was in control of the area? And so Hungary and Czechoslovakia, where my grandfather was from, became eventually the Ukraine. So there was fighting back then over land and over domination.
Speaker 1:And.
Speaker 2:I feel like that that's still going on. Domination, and I feel like that that's still going on. And then also, what's going on in Israel is a has been compared to the Holocaust. Of course it's on a smaller scale, but it's still the same concept of anti-Semitism. Now, you may argue whatever you want about that, but and you might argue it's about land- and ownership and I'm not going to get into that. I'm just saying there are people who are different, that are fighting with each other.
Speaker 2:One side started it, the other side is just trying to get people, their folks back.
Speaker 2:I see it's a mini Holocaust in my mind. Of course that's my perspective. There are people dying on, you know, every. There are people dying. It's not right, it shouldn't happen, it didn't need to happen and you know it's not resolved yet. So I, I just wish there was peace in the world. I don't know why everyone has to fight with everyone and can't get along. So we think that that, oh war, world War II, world War I happened back then All these other wars that we don't even pay enough attention to, that are still going on there's other areas where, you know, outside of those two areas, there are other areas where people are, where there's genocide going on and one controlling the other in a way.
Speaker 2:That's not right, and we have a lot of freedoms here in America. But I would say that life is cyclical, history is cyclical. Some of the same trends come back around, some of the same negative trends come around. You can say styles, but also, hatred is still. Anti-semitism may never have gone away. It's just percolating under the surface and ready for the first person to bring it back out again into acceptance. It's very scary for Jews and other ethnic groups, I guess too. I can only talk about my own experience. I mean, we had 9-11 and I think people were afraid back then of flying, and you know we're living in fear too.
Speaker 2:Right, you've got to go on with your life, of course, but there's definite fears within the Jewish community, and as Americans, I don't think we're super safe either. You know we have people who are trying to infiltrate and cause trouble with terrorism and such.
Speaker 2:It's just unfortunate. But yeah, the themes of the book have are repeating itself. And. But at the heart, I will give you something positive. At the heart of everything is family and love and and this, this in Hands of Gold the family shows you know, that's all that really matters. Let the world explode. It comes back to your family and what's important in life and the simple pleasures that you can have with, with your, with your life.
Speaker 1:Yes, I love that, ronnie, and I appreciate the historical context that you gave and, you know, just having your perspective, which I really appreciate, I think people get so disconnected sometimes and we have a lot of distractions going on, that you know. And then there's, like you said, anti-semitism is still existent. It didn't go anywhere and you know, there's always this fear of the other, you know, and territory, and I get that historical context that plays into that. But really, you know, hearing your perspective I really appreciate and I'm grateful that you shared as well, because I believe that people need to be educated and hear different perspectives and so that they could have a more broader worldview of how we're impacted, because if we and, like you said, we're not that safe in America as well, something's just, you know, brewing, we don't really know just yet, but, like your book, like you stated in the book, at the heart of it is love, at the heart of it is family. Things may be going on outside of us and around us, but that's our core, that's our bond that we have, and so if we could stand on that and I always tell people having family is truly a blessing and when we have conflicts, even within family, fight for your family, within reason, if it's something like. So, you know, we have to have boundaries, of course, but you know, family's worth fighting for, family's worth loving, you know, and love is a journey, and so I just appreciate that.
Speaker 1:And, like you said, things are cyclical and we just have to be aware, you know, and we have to do the research. And we, we just have to be aware, you know, and we have to do the research, and we, you know, have to have an open lens to what's going on in the world, because we're really all connected in some aspects. So if you think that, oh, that's not our problem, you know it could be like, definitely in our backyard tomorrow, we don't know. So having, like you know, this awareness and just having these conversations, I appreciate so much. So thank you for sharing, ronnie, I so appreciate that. One last question what did you find out about yourself as you wrote the book? Is there anything that you found out about you that you didn't know or you were like, oh OK, I guess that's me, or anything new or any self-awareness that came out of that self-awareness?
Speaker 2:that came out of that. I am super determined and sort of very, very persistent, very determined I get knocked down and figure out how to get myself back up again. You know, I've gone through some very depressing periods with this book and discouraging periods. I thought I had 200 rejections that were in a folder and it turns out that I only had 50, because I printed them all out and kept them and it turned out I only had 50. But I was like I said, I was only looking for the yes In life.
Speaker 2:I think that's important Never give up. I guess I never give up on my dreams. You know, maybe just wait for it. Wait for it. It's worth waiting for and anything good is worth working really hard for. And just yeah, I am a type A, I like to be productive, so I try to keep myself very busy and so I think I learned that I'm more like my grandfather than I would have thought in that way. I mean, obviously I didn't go through any of the issues that overcome obstacles and and persevere. And life will knock you down and get back up. Just just get back up. Just get back up, stop whining and get back up and go forth.
Speaker 1:I love that, ronnie. I love the fact that you said you know determination, you know wanting to stay busy, you know realizing that you're more like your grandfather than you even realized. You know, and I can definitely relate to that with my own grandfather, who has transitioned, but he was a. They called him a. He was very quiet, a quiet, strong man, and so when people meet me, I'm kind of an introvert. I really I become extroverted by choice, but I'm pretty quiet. And then when I begin to converse with people, they're like oh my goodness, I didn't know you went through that. You're kind of quiet, you're kind of meek.
Speaker 1:That is a sign of strength, and so that's what I took from my grandfather. So I can't even imagine what he went back through back then, back in the day, with 13 kids and working and taking care of my grandmother and in segregation, and they're 13 kids, I don't know, but he did it, you know, and so he was strong and he never complained, and I have some, some of those components, I mean. So you remind me of that. So I think your book definitely gives us hope. Hands of gold, you know, and so if any of our listeners want to purchase the book or reach out to you for any information or anything that you've written, what is your web link that they can go to?
Speaker 2:So it's www. Let me see if I can turn my head enough that you can see it you, let me see if I can turn my head enough that you can see it, ronnie robbinscom, you have to spell my name right. Okay, I turned my head enough that you can see it r-o-n-i-r-o-b-b-i-n-scom. I kept it. I didn't make it hands of gold, because I'm still thinking I'm going to write another book yeah, I already started um a might, a mighty arm is working title. It's loosely based on my dad's life, so I'm getting closer, I'm getting closer to me.
Speaker 2:I'm not going to write my story, it's not that interesting, but my father was a blacksmith a Jewish blacksmith in New York, long Island, and then took it from there. But he was an interesting person and had an interesting life. So I'm still experimenting with that one and you can see that it's available on Amazon, barnes, noble, walmart, target, goodreads, books A Million, any place where books are sold, and on my you can. There's a link on my website also, so hopefully people will get their hands on Hands of Gold.
Speaker 2:You can see I'm wearing a Hands of Gold right here, which is it's called a hamsa. It's a good luck charm. So that's my hands of gold. That's my marketing, no matter where I go, and it came from my grandmother, so there's some significance there. Yes, so hands of gold.
Speaker 1:Yes.
Speaker 2:So hands of gold. We can do a lot with our hands.
Speaker 1:Yes.
Speaker 2:And I hope that people will get their hands on hands of gold. I'm trying to put hands of gold in more golden hands.
Speaker 1:That's what I like to say I love it. I love it and you know listeners go out and get the book. You definitely. You know I'm just empowered by having the discussion about the book, our history, your history, how we can definitely understand overcoming and being resilient and endure and knowing that love. And so, thank you, ronnie, I so appreciate you. This morning You've been a wonderful guest and I'm going to go out and purchase the book myself and I'm just so encouraged and inspired. Thank you again, thank you.