Are you moving or separated by distance from family? You hope to visit often. You’ll call and write. But life often gets in the way of maintaining connections with the people we love the most. Consider the eldest members of your family. Perhaps you have aging parents or grandparents who are hundreds of miles away. How can you keep those precious connections alive?
Through a good story.
Arrange a phone call or video call, gather the kids, and ask your loved ones questions we assume we have endless time to get to know. (Spoiler: You don't!) Some good starter questions:
Who was their very first best friend?
What their childhood bedroom looked like?
(Was it cramped? Messy? Who did they share it with?)
What was their most prized birthday or Christmas present?
What was their favorite childhood meal?
Childhood is an endless source of stories that kids and grandkids love to hear, and it's a good reminder that we were all young once! Take some notes, use a voice recorder (Zoom has recording options), or just sit back and listen. It will likely be a memorable conversation!
Looking for more help or support? We have an interview toolkit on our website and also offer full-service memoir writing packages. Capturing someone's life story is a gesture of love, but secretly, it’s a gift for you! Mom and Dad have a great story worth saving. And if you have kids, I guarantee that they will love to read a story about how their grandparents met, or what you, their parent, was like as a child. And what grandparent doesn’t love to gush about their grandchildren? Kids love to read about themselves! Good luck and here's to many good stories ahead.