Preserving
family mmemories
“I urge you to pursue preserving your personal history to allow your children and grandchildren to know
who you were as a child and what your hopes and dreams were.” —Oprah Winfrey
Y MOTHER PASSED AWAY in 1984—more ics as the meaning of life, wisdom garnered from long experi-
than a decade before I realized how valuable her ence, and hopes for future generations.
stories about her life would be to me, my chil- Transcribe the tapes or type up your notes.
Mdren, and eventually my grandchildren. How I The editing process involves placing everything in proper
would love to hear about her parents and grandparents, life in order, combining stories that belong together, and editing the
Europe before and during World War II, her thoughts and feel- text itself to make it interesting and smooth while retaining the
ings as a wife and mother, and her views on spirituality. individual’s personality.
When my first son was born in 1995, I woke up to my over- Share your edited version with the person you inter-
sight and asked my father to sit down in front of our camcorder viewed, and allow him or her to update, clarify and make cor-
and talk about his ancestors and his life. He told about living rections.
without a refrigerator or radio, about dirigibles flying over- Scan photos and other memorabilia, such as letters and doc-
head, and about his experiences during World War II as a nav- uments, to create images for use in the book.
igator on a bomber flying over Europe. Use a layout program, such as Publisher, Quark Xpress or
Later, I flew to Europe to gather stories about my mother InDesign, to place your images and text together on the pages.
and her ancestors that her brother still could remember. Print finished pages on heavyweight paper that will not
Now I feel grateful for the many hours of stories I collected, bleed through. The document can be saved on a flash drive and
because my uncle has passed away and my father no longer has taken to a print shop for high-quality printouts.
the stamina for long interviews. Additionally, a bindery can turn printed pages into a single
Family stories can be captured in several ways. I used a hardbound book or as many copies as you would like. You can
camcorder, but a tape recorder can be less intimidating for the even select the covers and materials to be used.
person being interviewed. My uncle felt uncomfortable with These books make a fabulous gift for family members that
both methods, so I simply sat and listened during the day, and can be passed on as treasured heirlooms from one generation to
returned to the hotel at night to write down everything I could the next.
remember.
About the author: Heidi Bright Parales, M.Div.,Try following these tips for gathering your family’s stories:
is a local free-lance writer, editor and photogra-Develop a list of questions to ask, and share them ahead of
pher who preserves family memories for others.time with your interviewees. Use these questions as the tools to
www.preservefamilymemories.com. She also isget the conversation flowing.
the author of Hidden Voices: Biblical WomenStart with memories of ancestors and move through the
and Our Christian Heritage (Smyth & Helwys,interviewee’s childhood, adolescence, and young adulthood,
1998). She can be contacted at 513.774.9882continuing into the present. Gather statements about such top-
May-June 2008 Whole Living Journal 11
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