Touching Gently: A Memoir

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The story begins with Charles Hargrove’s childhood in the city of Redlands, California during the Great Depression. He paints vivid, moving portraits of the people who influenced his life: his wise father, his strong and loving mother, and his talented Uncle Jack. His personal story conveys a larger picture of the time and place, and the culture, from which he sprang.

Charles tells of his coming of age, his delight in becoming an Eagle Scout, his relationship (and continuing obsession) with the game of golf, and the hardships of life on a destroyer during the Korean War. And he writes most lovingly of his wife, Joan Van Euer, sharing their story from their youthful courtship to her heartbreaking death from Alzheimer’s. Charles writes plainly and truthfully of life’s twists and turns, paths considered but not taken, the precious victories and bitter losses, the pain and dark places, and the simple but exquisite joy of being human.