"We are dealing here with family and with sacred materials...I say 'sacred' meaning a form of authority that does not come from God; I mean what carries authority because it goes to the heart of what makes you a human being, what you carry with you all your life."

Notes:

1. Barbara Myerhoff, "The Ritual Telling of the Great Story that Shapes Individual Lives," transcript of lecture, ts, box 55, folder 5, Barbara Myerhoff Papers, U of Southern California, 33.