Life Story Links: October 20, 2026
“If you have a body, you have a story, a history, a manuscript made of the tissue, bone, and blood of a life lived.”
—Megan Febuary, Brave the Page
Vintage photograph of the Manhattan skyline and the Fulton Street dock in New York City, 1935, by Berenice Abbott, courtesy the Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Photography Collection, The New York Public Library Digital Collections.
Our stories, our selves
IN THE COMPANY OF MEMORIES
If I could spend just ten more minutes with my mother, I know exactly what I'd do. In a personal piece written for my friend Whitney Myers at Sacred Stories, I explore how revisiting even the most ordinary memories of someone we've lost can offer moments of connection and companionship.
MY STORY TO TELL?
“In the past, my mom bristled at the idea of a written family story. I think it scared her. Maybe when it's only spoken, it’s malleable. Everyone can have their own version.” Jill Sarkozi on talking with her mom about writing their family history.
FINDING INSPIRATION IN HIS MOTHER’S STORYTELLING
“Now that I could smell the past, I needed to hear its voice. My mother supplied that, not only reporting past events but also acting them out, giving life to what would have otherwise remained abstract fragments of memory.”
A JOINT UNDERTAKING
When Rebecca Barry decided to help her father with his memoir to help him cope with Alzheimer’s, she anticipated the impact it might have on him, but not on herself. “Mostly, though, I was able to get to know my parent as the person he was before I was born. I will never get over the gift of this time.”
WRITING TRAUMA—OR NOT
“The story that needs to come out will come out—when it is time. When the body and the whole person are ready to know and face the darkness that they carry. Silence and protection are not bad.”
Pieces of the past
A GRIEF-EDGED PROCESS
“A house full of things is not a house but a memory machine; things are not things but layers of recollection of self.” When it comes time to empty a parent’s home, sorting the junk from the memory can be overwhelming.
THE NEUROSCIENCE OF DECLUTTERING
“One brain-imaging study indicated that past versions of ourselves compress in our minds, similarly to how faraway objects blur in the distance. Holding a hat you used to love activates memories from that past self, creating a portal between who you are now and the person you once were.”
THE FUTURE OF MEMORY PRESERVATION
Scientists can record parts of brain activity linked to memory, researchers are mapping the neural networks that store experiences, and digital systems can preserve enormous amounts of a person's voice, writing, images, and personal history.
VINTAGE ART, NEW CREATIONS
Century Library is a small, family-run archive of vintage illustrations, fonts, ornaments, and ephemera, all hand-restored from real antique sources. See how some people are using the archive.
50 YEARS IN THE MAKING
As Cleveland's Jewish Archives mark a half-century milestone, Leon Bibb explores a collection that preserves generations of memories:
After the life writing
BEYOND THE BOOK
Finishing a family history book can feel bittersweet, but sharing it often sparks even more storytelling. In a new post I explore why sharing matters and offer six meaningful ways to do it.
THE MEMOIR THAT CHANGED HIS LIFE
Comedian, author and podcast host Trevor Noah joins TODAY to talk about releasing a 10th anniversary edition of his bestselling memoir Born a Crime, which includes a new epilogue and answers readers’ questions:
WHERE DOES MEMOIR STAND?
“The academy is still slow to embrace memoir. A lot of scholars think it’s too simplistic, or not rigorously researched. But at the American Sociological Association conference this year, there was a panel discussion about integrating narratives into sociological research, and the room was absolutely packed.”
Short takes
Dawn Roode’s curated roundup for the week of October 19, 2026, includes reads on preserving family stories, writing about our lives, and where memories reside.