If you had a short document written by each of your long lost relatives telling of their lives, hopes & dreams.... would that be good?I would LOVE to have even a one-pager from each of my grandparents telling me about their lives.
Generations from now, wouldn't it be... enriching... to know your relatives can read about you and your family - how you lived, your values, your triumphs and experiences?
Yup, that's all part of Legacy too. If you do a search for 'Legacy' on the web, you'll find hundreds of listings for people that will help you with your 'ethical will', or a family history book, a story in print, audio or video of good ole' Uncle Harry, Aunt Martha, Mom, Dad... or yes, you.
The best site is http://www.personalhistorians.org/.
TEN REASONS WHY YOU SHOULD RECORD YOUR STORIES:
- No one else will do it for you.
- No one else knows the stories of your life quite like you do.
- You owe it to yourself and to your family.
- Let your descendants know that you were a real person... and that they descended from you.
- The stories you heard from your grandparents won't die with you.
- The stories you created and were a part of will live on. They'll entertain and amaze your descendants.
- You are part of where you lived. And if some of them still live there... it will be rewarding for them to see how their community has changed.
- Describing what you did when you were young will seem pretty wierd to them... but it will be very entertaining reading!
- Telling of your tough times will teach them how you, and everyone around you, coped. And you must might teach them something.
- Your stories will make the world a richer place. When you 'go', they live on!
Have you got a story about Legacy? Please send it to me at rlucy@eyelearner.com ... or 'comment' below.
3 comments:
Hi Robb, Tom Puchniak led me your way. I don't remember if we've met (sorry), but your name is so familiar to me that I'm wondering if you, too, lived in the Yukon.
I'm in the process of adding categories to my blog so that all the family and personal history stories are easily accessible.
Hope there will be family in the future as interested in reading these as I was in writing them. :)
What a great list of reasons. I completely agree!
I often think how great it would be if I had journals or a history of my grandma. It was this sense of loss that was one of the reasons I started a business making personal history documentaries (and joined the Association of Personal Historians). The great thing though is that you don't need a professional - any video camera (and a tripod and mic.) will get you started and I am sure most if not all APH members would be glad to give free advice or make suggestions.
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