Writing Your Childhood Memories and Family Stories

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Comment by Emily Doolin Aulicino on April 2, 2013 at 5:31pm

Jenny and others.

I'm very sorry that my busy life has left little time to check this site.  However, if someone needs my attention you can reach me at my home email (I don't bite):  aulicino@hevanet.com

Most people have a hard time writing their family stories and memories because they believe it must be in perfect form or they just do not know where to begin. Let them know that it is better to have the story with poor grammar and punctuation than to not preserve the story at all. Ask them if they would rather have such a memory from a gr-gr-grandparent or nothing.  They'll take the poorly written one.

Most people may feel they are back in school with an assignment to write something.  Be considerate of this possibility.

Regarding your request for having relatives write pieces of their memories.  I have several ideas in random order:

1.  Purchase my booklet "Memoing" My Memories (Yes, I know the first word isn't a real word! LOL)  This booklet offers a topic and many suggestions so if it applies to your family, you are ready to write once you have read the half page to page and a half.

2.You or your family can start with doing a time line. Just list the years of their lives and add a sentence or two of an event that happened for that year or month, etc.  Some times people will write more.  The more you write the more memories.

3.  Interview your relatives.  Ask a few questions or read one of the topics in my booklet and let them take it from there.  Record them.  It would be nice to save the recordings after you transcribe them.

4.  Write on a topic you know about your family and call your relative to see what they remember.  Doing this from time to time will stimulate them to talk and maybe eventually write.

Hope this helps.  Others in our group may have ideas as well.

Emily 

Comment by Emily Doolin Aulicino on March 18, 2011 at 4:47pm

What wonderful ideas all of you have shared!  Thank you so much.  I see that no messages have been posted for quite some time....Perhaps we need to invite others that you know and continue sharing your experiences.

 

Thank you all....

Emily

Comment by Slægtens Historie on March 6, 2011 at 6:17am

Researching the history of your family provide numerous details of your unique ancestry and cultural heritage.

I know from experience that your particular family history will be an invaluable and treasured gift you can pass on to your children and children`s children.

My web

Comment by Ursula Ann Martin on August 20, 2009 at 2:13pm

Hi Barb,

Thanks for the tip, it sounds good. I'm am trying to write my own little book of our family history. Not got very far yet, maybe the book you mentioned will set me up on the right track. I'll check it out, thanks for that.

Ursula

Comment by Ursula Ann Martin on August 20, 2009 at 2:12pm

Hi Karen,

No there is also no death notice or obituary in the local newspaper. It's almost of if she was wiped out of existence...shame.

Ursula

Comment by Karen Rhodes on August 19, 2009 at 7:17pm

Oh, my. I guess you are the record of this, if none of your other relatives will relate their memories of it. Sometimes a written journal or diary entry or letter is all that does remain of an event. Record it, I guess, is all you can do, to the best of your memory. Is there at least an obituary or death notice from the newspaper?
.

I can imagine that wasn't pleasant.

Comment by Ursula Ann Martin on August 19, 2009 at 2:40pm

Hi Karen,

We had the cremation service one day and the next my brother collected the ashes (in a plastic pot of all things!) The immediate family gathered together and drove to the Quantock Hills (In Somerset UK) and her ashed were rather unceremoniously scattered (I'd say dumped) amongst the heather. The plastic pot was thrown in the bin.....

......not a nice experience and there is no record of this.....

Ursula

Comment by Karen Rhodes on August 18, 2009 at 9:26pm

Ursula, you might not know the exact resting place of your mother's ashes, but where was the ceremony held? Who handled the arrangements? A funeral home or cemetery? My father died in 1954, a former Naval aviator, and he and two buddies had agreed that they would each be cremated and scattered from a Navy plane. His was handled by a cemetery in Glendale, California. I went down there when I was out to California visiting relatives, and the sexton showed me the record.

My father's "final resting place" is pretty much most of Los Angeles County!

Comment by Ursula Ann Martin on August 17, 2009 at 4:02pm

What a great group! Good idea.

I was talking to my children about this. They asked me what I would like to do when I die (?????) whether I would prefer to be buried or cremated. Going on my own experiences (not of dying of course) of my mother being cremated and her ashes scattered over a nature reserve....got me thinking. There is no record of this.....as far as anyone knows we could have eaten her ashes on toast!

How on earth in 200 years time can a future decendant of ours ever find her? I know there is the death record but there is NOTHING to say where her final resting place is. Only the immediate living family know where she was laid to rest....

I've started writing a family history book. Hopefully in 200 years it will be available to our future decendants....

Ursula

Comment by Abigail Grunst on August 2, 2009 at 8:14pm

What a neat topic! I've been wanting to do this for some time but never get around to it. Maybe this will give me the inspiration I need. Look forward to reading all of your ideas.

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