I worked with seniors for many years and it always made me sad that I didn’t have enough time to listen to their stories. I remember being astounded when one of my “old dears” told me about traveling in a covered wagon. Just imagine the monumental events that she lived through. Pretty exciting stuff, don’t you think? I hope that she or someone in her family took the time to put those memories into writing. Children, grandchildren and great grandchildren need those stories in order to appreciate that history is a living thing. History isn’t just a bunch of dates to memorize; it is the story of who we are.
People are often reluctant to talk about or write about their personal history because they just assume that everyone knows about it. In the past, people either kept their stories to themselves or passed them on verbally. This, of course, was in a time when people actually talked and listened to each other.
People are starting to realize how much they have missed. E-mail and texting are wonderful ways to stay in touch, but they will never be able to convey true history. As a result people are scrambling to try to make sense of their lives and understand how people actually felt about things. Enrollment in memoir writing classes have become increasingly popular, as people look for advice on how to preserve their stories. Writing allows for more depth and honesty than telling stories orally. It isn’t just a matter of jotting down dates and events but a way to tell others how you felt about them.
Sometimes is difficult to know how to get started. Senior and Community Centers are often good places to start. Many of them offer classes on how to tell your life story. The key is not to get discouraged by enormity of the project. Pamela Gerhardt (The Washington Post: Washington, D. C. October 17, 2000) says to think small. You don’t have to begin with your birth. Start at significant moments that you remember and work back and forward from them. Life stories take on two formats: the autobiography which covers the whole life and is bound by strict accuracy, and the more popular ‘memoir’ which focuses on a few key themes or years. Life stories are not the same as a formal family history. The author suggests starting with a simple journal.
The focus of most classes is on sparking interest. It is to get older people to start thinking about and writing their life stories. People will say that they haven’t done anything memorable or interesting and that their lives are uneventful, which isn’t true at all. Each person has a story. Reviewing life stories can help a person find meaning, value and fulfillment. It is a celebration of life. We lose a lot when memories are not written down. (Carolyn Melago (The Sun: Baltimore, Md. December 25, 1997).
If you start thinking back you will begin realize that you lived through some pretty exciting times. The idea is not to be nervous. An article in the (News Journal: Daytona Beach, Fla. September 12, 2007) outlined words of advice from Lillian Brownstein who wrote “Un-Tips for Writing Your Life Story.” The first comforting thought is that grammar, spelling and diction are unimportant. Write about experiences, relatives, your religion, your travel and your holidays. The main thing is to write with a train of thought. You don’t stop to punctuate when you talk or think, what is important is your train of thought. As long, she says, as you are think and feel and are living, you have a story to tell.
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