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This Week in Personal History... July 11
The weekly roundup of blogs for July 11, 2017 includes posts on family reunions, legacy letters, & stories of mom, curated by Dawn Roode for all memory-keepers.
“Every man's memory is his private literature.”
― Aldous Huxley
Welcome back, memory-keepers! I hope you had a festive and safe Fourth of July week, and that (if you must) you're easing back into the work week with a smile on your face ; )
This week we take a dive into family reunions, legacy letters, and stories of mom.
Please leave comments about any of the topics featured here (they’re nothing if not conversation starters, I hope!) and share with other like-minded memory-keepers. And if you're a blogger with content you'd like to see featured here, of course click the link and share what you’ve got!
Roundup of Personal History Blogs - July 11, 2017
In the News
“Aunts, uncles, friends, neighbors, children and grandchildren—everyone who grieves my Opa has different memories, different recollections of him. Standing by that photo album, I realized we were putting our memories & knowledge & stories together like a puzzle to see a larger picture of the man we’d lost.” Read more in Love by the Puzzle Pieces.
“People almost always tend to gravitate to very personal, impactful stories in their lives. So if you say, ‘Tell us something that's really important to you,’ most people tell something that makes them tear up at a certain point.” Read about an interesting community oral history endeavor in Southern Colorado.
On the Blogs
LEGACY LETTERS
Legacy writing can be both healing and historical, and can make a lasting difference to your family & friends. Here are 5 tips on how to write a ‘love’ letter to your family from Sarah Hamer.
FAMILY REUNION FUN
“On the eve of the reunion a few of the cousins gathered at my parents’ house to celebrate my father’s 85th birthday and started sharing stories,” writes Bruce Summers of Summoose Tales, whose post focuses on how he integrated “adult Show & Tell” at his latest family reunion.
Check out the inspiration behind Bruce's story-sharing device and find a Show & Tales event near you (from personal experience, I can attest you won't be disappointed!).
IN SEARCH OF...
Meghan Vigeant of Stories to Tell is seeking women to interview about their experiences gathering their own mother’s stories. Have you interviewed or recorded your mother telling her stories, delved through her journals, or interviewed other family members about your mom? If so, reach out to Meghan—who knows where the conversation will lead?!
Worth Checking Out
One of the best ways to get to the heart of someone's story is to ask them great questions.
Even oral historians who have conducted countless interviews still hone their craft. A new (rather meta) podcast, The Turnaround with Jesse Thorn, turns the tables on interviewers, making them the interviewees. The first episode with Ira Glass was a delight.
Radio Rookies, produced by WNYC, has compiled resources to help students conduct better interviews—but I would say these links (which include advice on how to record interviews, how to choose a topic, and a handy question generator) are great tools for anyone wanting to interview their own family members to capture stories for posterity.
What Are You Reading?
Let me know what you've read that the rest of us might enjoy—memoirs, how-to or business books, even articles.
#MemoriesMatter #Legacy #LifeStories #Memoir
This Week in Personal History... June 27, 2017
Weekly roundup of blogs & news stories of interest to personal historians, memory keepers, and life storytellers curated by Dawn Roode. Comment, share, contribute!
“Live, love, laugh, leave a legacy.” –Stephen R. Covey
If you’re visiting this site, it means you’re a memory-keeper, a storyteller, the family archivist. However you identify yourself, I am fairly certain you’d agree that preserving our most meaningful stories for the next generation is paramount.
Welcome to the first in what promises to be a weekly roundup of stories geared just for you!
Personal history is a vital industry that includes oral historian bookmakers like myself, videographers, ghostwriters, genealogists, biographers…and many more; we are united by a shared mission of preservation & story gathering. This site has plenty of advice and book ideas & inspiration, and we’d love to work with you to create a coffee table book bringing your stories to life. But we can also refer you to personal historians with services more closely geared to what you’re looking for, or who are closer to your home—many of them whose blogs are featured in this roundup.
Please leave comments about any of the topics featured here (they’re nothing if not conversation starters, I hope!) and share with other like-minded memory-keepers. And if you're a blogger with content you'd like to see featured here, of course click the link and share what you’ve got!
Roundup of Personal History Blogs - June 27, 2017
In the News
Explore 22k immigration photos & read the accompanying personal stories from the @naagovau's collection on the revamped “Destination: Australia” site
Did you know your home movies may be unwatchable soon?
“Why You Need to Stop Procrastinating and Transfer Your VHS Tapes to Digital ASAP”
“Videotapes Are Becoming Unwatchable As Archivists Work To Save Them”
Some insightful writing & glorious photos documenting lesbians from all walks of life, from perhaps a surprising source: “American Women: Pride”
On the Blogs
“Turn, Turn, Turn” by Verissima Productions' Pam Pacelli Cooper on the nature of change, and her company's next big documentary endeavor (can't wait to learn more!).
“Stories Are Everything” by Dawn Roode of Modern Heirloom Books: Why Soledad O'Brien and Henry Louis Gates, Jr. value stories so much.
“In the Beginning, or How We Created Something from Nothing,” a conversation between personal historians and partners Samantha Shubert and Susan Hood on the occasion of the first anniversary of their business, Remarkable Life Memoirs: “There’s such a market for preserving people's stories that I feel really positive about how it’s going to go for us.” So do we, so do we! Happy first anniversary, ladies ; )
What Are You Reading?
Let me know what you've read that the rest of us might enjoy—memoirs, how-to or business books, even articles.
#MemoriesMatter #Legacy #LifeStories
#Legacy Links: June 10 - Photographs, Memory, and Life Lessons
This week's top 4 legacy links all focus in some way on the enduring power of photography—the power to connect us with the past, to inspire, and my favorite, to reveal stories and truths.
Our top 4 #legacy links for the week ending Friday, June 10, 2016
1 - Families photographed with images of their descendants make a powerful connection to past.
A photography exhibit, on view until tomorrow at El Tejar del Mellizo community center in Seville, Spain, presents photographs of the living descendants of those who lost their lives during the Spanish Civil War. Organized by the Our Memory Association, “DNA of Memory—Graves from the Franco Regime” features photographs by more than 30 Spanish artists. The images capture descendants carrying photographs of relatives killed at the beginning of the Civil War, and they are more provocative and moving than I could have imagined. If you don't happen to be in Seville tomorrow (!!), I urge you to click on the photo below to view the various photographs on HuffPo.
In a photo from the "DNA of Memory" exhibit, Narvaez Hernandez holds up photos of his parents, Enrique Narvaez Borrego and Concepcion Hernandez Garcia, who both died in Marchena, Seville, when Hernandez was 3 years old. Photo by Javier Diaz, courtesy Our Memory Association
2 - How a personal quest to find family resemblances turned into something more.
This one's not new, but somehow I missed it when it made the viral rounds last year. See what fellow personal historian Rachael Rifkin discovers when she undertakes a unique experiment to recreate eight photos of her relatives. Her musings on the nature of descendancy are as enticing as her photo recreations.
According to a family tree, Rifkin's cousin Ibolia, left, died at Auschwitz in 1944. Rifkin estimates this picture is from sometime in the 1930s. Image courtesy Life Stories Today
3 - One decade, one family, one photographer: This is a photo book I am looking forward to.
Thanks, Family Search, for bringing this one to our attention. Photographer Thomas Holton's book The Lams of Ludlow Street \, which chronicles one family through 13 years' worth of photographs, will be published next month.
"As Mr. Holton got to know the family, the project became more personal. He would pick up the children from school. He visited the Lams’ relatives in Hong Kong and China. When he married, Cindy was his flower girl,"
writes Annie Correal in the New York Times article. Make sure to click through the accompanying slideshow!
4 - What happens when a suitcase of photos sends her on the storytelling adventure of a lifetime.
In the vein of "Finding Vivian Maier," a North Carolina woman hit the found photos jackpot when she discovered a suitcase full of one man's life effects, including photos, letters, and other ephemera—and then began a journey of discovery as she sought to uncover the stories his things revealed. Her site is wonder to behold.
Read an introduction to her photographic treasure hunt on the ever-interesting Save Family Photos:
"Handling these seemingly random artifacts serves as a constant reminder that the sometimes cryptic, occasionally awkward, and often amusing snippets of the past were once as alive and vital to their creators as my own emails, journals and vacation photos are to me."
#Legacy Links: June 3
This week's roundup includes #legacy links from fellow members of the Association of Personal Historians and other pro storytellers: Click for a short “flash memoir,” a moving commencement speech video, a powerful 3-word sentence, and reactions to the remake of the classic “Roots” miniseries.
This week’s roundup includes links from fellow members of the Association of Personal Historians and other professional storytellers.
Our top 4 #legacy links for the week ending Friday, June 3, 2016
1 - Read this “flash memoir” for a quick dose of inspiration.
I have written about life vignettes: scenes from a life and other short biographical stories that distill memories and provide a glimpse into an individual's life. Sarah White of Stories Well Told goes a step further and delves into what she calls “flash memoir”:
brief essays that capture a small moment of time, but invite contemplation. They work in a “flash,” like a lightning bolt that suddenly illuminates a landscape.
Read contributor Kay Frazier's flash memoir, “Balloons Are for Kids” for a quick dose of inspiration.
2 - There's always one commencement speech from graduation season that resonates far and wide.
Pam Pacelli Cooper, president of Verissima Productions, shares a 2016 Colgate University commencement address from Dr. Omid Safi of Duke University, in which he eloquently—and with great humor and warmth—speaks about the many definitions of success, love, and justice. “Welcome into the circle of compassion,” he tells the graduates. And he leaves them, and us, with much to ponder—including, as Pacelli Cooper does, about the vital role memories of hardship and pain play in our own legacies.
If you are short on time, fast-forward to the 36-minute mark, when Dr. Safi is introduced.
3 - There’s power in a 3-word sentence.
Sometimes people just need a little reminder, and storyteller Nikki Groom delivers:
4 - Did the epic “Roots” remake retain its original potency?
I have DVR'd the series, and the blockbuster remake is still available for streaming. Journalist David Zurawik offers his take in the Baltimore Sun, and opines that
perhaps the greatest storytelling triumph of “Roots” is that Haley wrapped all of it, from the inverted captivity narrative to the Kunta Kinte hero quest, in the structure of a family saga. “Roots” is essentially a cosmic version of the kinds of stories told at family gatherings about those who came before us...
I'd love to hear your take on the remake: Was the more graphic violence redeemed by the storytelling? Did the miniseries have a strong impact on you?
#legacy #FamilyLegacy #FamilyHistory #LifeStories #storytelling #writing #custombooks #OralHistory #design #genealogy #MemoriesMatter #LegacyLinks
5-Bullet Friday Legacy Edition: May 27
We’re launching 5-Bullet Friday Legacy Edition here on the blog, in which we compile five of our favorite articles, tweets, Instagram posts, or other shares from around the web on topics near and dear to our mission:
#legacy #FamilyLegacy #FamilyHistory #LifeStories #storytelling #writing #custombooks #OralHistory #design #genealogy #MemoriesMatter
I’m a huge Tim Ferriss fan, and his 5-Bullet Friday emails are one of the only newsletters to which I subscribe that I actually open every single time they land in my inbox. They’re brief, substantive, and interesting.
In homage to Tim’s format (and fun alliterative name), we’re launching 5-Bullet Friday Legacy Edition here on the blog, in which we compile five of our favorite articles, tweets, Instagram posts, or other shares from around the web on topics near and dear to our mission:
#legacy #FamilyLegacy #FamilyHistory #LifeStories #storytelling #writing #custombooks #OralHistory #design #genealogy #MemoriesMatter
Our top 5 #legacy links for the week ending Friday, May 27, 2016
1 - Ahh, the good old days!
Our elementary school years are rife with memories. Jennifer at Red Barn Memories shared this retro graphic on Instagram, and her blog offers quick questions to ask your loved ones about their early school years to help get their stories on record:
2 - From diaries to collages on poster board, from Snapchat to Instagram, teenagers are adept at proclaiming their interests in graphic storytelling fashion. Two recent examples that resonate for me:
- Actress Chloe Sevigny’s contribution to a magazine called “FanPages” was a collage she made in fifth grade—and, oh how familiar it looks to what hung on my own walls (if ONLY I had saved them!).
Chloe Sevigny's pinboard, courtesy “FanPages”
- And actress, feminist, and writer Lena Dunham published a limited-run book with all benefits going to Girls Write Now, an organization I support. The concept? Excerpts from her journals written during 2005-2006—when she was a vulnerable and open 19-year-old.
3 - Before you throw away your child's artwork...
Scanning or photographing kids’ artwork is a wonderful way to preserve some of the color and whimsy of their childhood. Here’s a little sketch my 6-year-old son did in between activities at school this week:
"Ladybug Dreaming," pencil and crayon on paper, by Vittorio, age 6
4 - Oral histories connect us to our cultures and identities.
Jane Jun, a student at the University of Chicago, shares some of her own personal history, and the realizations it brought her to.
"Perhaps this type of knowledge, transmitted from one mouth to another, preserves a certain kind of magic that ought not be lost, offering a real and intimate form of learning intricately tied to culture and identity. I wonder what sorts of discoveries we, as students, can also gain from examining our own family histories, and the kinds of thought-provoking and extraordinary stories we can unearth about how we came to be where we are today."
Illustration by Meera Joshi, courtesy The Chicago Maroon
5 - Is this the app you need to quickly scan all those dusty photo albums?
Tech I’m testing now: Unfade. This app looks to be a great way for the average family memory-keeper to turn shoeboxes of photos into lasting digital files, especially handy for when convenience and ease of use trump having full control over the digitization process.
Have you tried this photo scanning app yet? Thoughts?
My first “scan” took all of two seconds, and I gotta say I do like the simplicity, color quality, and auto-cropping! Full review to come.
Using technology to help you share your family’s stories
There is plenty you can do to ensure that you are—easily!—capturing bits and pieces of your family history on a regular basis. Even if a photo book is way off in your future, take steps now to make life easier later with our recommended memory-sharing websites. With weekly emails prompting a family elder to share personal stories, and options for video, audio, and other customization, creating your personal digital archive is simpler than ever.
A recurring theme here at Modern Heirloom Books is that while we are drowning in our digital images, most people are not doing anything really worthwhile with their pictures. That’s a main reason we exist as a company—to help you curate your pictures and craft them into stories you can share through exquisitely designed books.
What of those stories, though? There is plenty you can do to ensure that you are—easily!—capturing bits and pieces of your family history along the way. Even if a photo book is way off in your future, take steps now to make life easier later.
“There is plenty you can do to ensure that you are—easily!—capturing bits and pieces of your family history along the way.”
In the last few years a host of memory sharing sites have arisen to help tech-savvy families record and share their family memories. Some have evolved over time, while new ones continue to hit the app store in an attempt to simplify the process with more elegant and engaging interfaces. Many of them are too labor-intensive or convoluted to warrant your time, however (and I doubt they’ll be around in a few more years).
One Memory-Sharing App That’s Worth Your Time—and One to Watch (IOHO)
You know those fill-in-the-blank memory books that tempt on Barnes & Noble bookshelves, or the beautiful journals that promise to leave your story for your children? (You know, the one that sits on your nightstand with just two pages filled in?) They’re a wonderful idea, if only we’d truly sit down and answer the questions. StoryWorth is like a digital version of these books, but with so many more benefits.
Options for good old-fashioned fill-in-the-blank memory journals abound—but they're useless if no one fills them in!
StoryWorth recipients receive a weekly email prompting them to answer a question based on their life experiences. The array of questions is vast and evocative, though users may always choose to answer a question they themselves craft. When a reply is input, answers are emailed to a preset list of people (so, as many family members and friends as you want to designate may receive your stories).
The value? It’s easy and fun to answer these prompts, whether a subject types a response on the website or via email, or chooses to record an audio clip over the phone. Photos and audio files can also be uploaded to the site, and stories—all saved on StoryWorth and available for printing or download at any time—are editable and secure. Remember: These aren’t biographies you’re crafting. They are nuggets from your (or your mother’s or grandfather’s) life—the time you hitchhiked across the state, the first time he flew on an airplane, that time none of the kids could find the hidden Easter eggs—colorful tales that the rest of there family will be thrilled to discover.
The site has a few packages ranging from $39 to $119 per year, and they offer a one-month free trial (you don’t even have to enter your credit card to start your trial). Check it out.
If your memories are all over the multimedia map and you want something more dynamic and mobile-friendly, I venture to guess that the imminent app I Rememba might be a good choice. I can’t say much more, though, as the app is still in development; I have signed up for access to their beta launch, so I’ll update you when I’ve eventually had time to test it. Why does it warrant my interest? Well, I am right there with the founder’s inspiration:
““Today, I’m 34 yrs old and have a 3.5 yr old daughter, of whom I have more than 25GB of pictures and videos…and due to the sheer speed with which we’re creating new memories, we don’t really care about them as much as we used to. Can you imagine, when my daughter grows up, what it would be like for her to Search and/or Share just the BEST memories of her life?? ….feels like trying to find a needle in a haystack…””
The launch site promises ways to preserve, capture, and share memories, in whatever format (video, audio, photo, text, and even family tree charts), and to “leave your legacy through time capsules.” I Rememba, like Modern Heirloom Books, is about preservation of memories and connecting generations. I’ll be watching them!
Family History vs. Family Stories
There is a place for memoirs and full-fledged biographies: the library.
Your own stories should not be told in minute detail, covering every life decision and milestone. I am not insinuating that your accomplishments and experiences are not worthwhile—truly, I am not. But for most of us, that…long…story would be rather…boring.
Perhaps it is important for you to chronicle your heritage, and I value a detailed family tree as much as any genealogist. For me, though, the personal tales that inspire a smile or reveal a person’s character are of even greater value. As the cliché goes, no one wants to sit through two hours’ worth of family vacation video, but a highlight reel is always welcome! Likewise, your descendants don’t want to feel like they are reading a 100-page history lesson, but rather as if they are being introduced to the interesting, unique people who came before them.
“No one wants to sit through two hours’ worth of family vacation video, but a highlight reel is always welcome!”
The memory-sharing apps mentioned above are great options for capturing the memories that matter. You’ll know which stories resonate when you get responses from your family members. “OMG I had no idea you were such a rebel soul!!” “I always knew you had a generous spirit, but this is above and beyond.” “LOL you are the same now as when you were 6yo!” “Now that I’m a mom I do the same thing!!”
“You’re not faced with thinking about your whole life or even what story you want to tell,” Nancy Mills told the NY Times about her experience with StoryWorth. “It’s like you’re having a conversation.”
And editing out stories that are less impactful—meaning that when you read them months later they don’t make you feel something—is easy.
I was lucky enough to inherit a book in which my mom recorded some memories the old-fashioned way—a true treasure.
Whether you actually sit down and use a good old-fashioned pen to record your memories (my mother did, and the book she left me will be forever cherished) or you subscribe to StoryWorth or another tech-aid, just do it. Get your stories down, and saved in one place.
Then, when you’re ready, let’s turn them into something even more special.