Yesterday's holiday reminded me of this past post.
We've talked many times about writing your family stories, putting your memories into print form. It's wonderful to tell stories like the photo that shows an elderly woman with her family at the dinner table. Is she quietly listening to their conversation, or is she entering into the chatter and offering stories about her younger years? The young family out on a cold day creating a snowman is making memories for their children.
Telling stories and making memories should be a goal we all strive for. Let's look at telling stories first.
My parents were wonderful storytellers. When we finished eating Mom and Dad enjoyed their after-dinner coffee, and we kids were subjected to many stories about their childhoods, their parents who had died before we got to know them, and their friends. Sometimes, we kids got a bit tired of those stories, but we heard them often enough to remember them as adults. And now that our parents passed on many years ago, those stories are precious gems. I've incorporated many into my writing and have also made a book of family stories. I duplicated it for each of my three brothers and mailed it to the various parts of the country where they lived. It was probably the most appreciated gift I ever gave them.
Seniors enjoy looking back and relating stories from a lifetime. Some of them won't do so until questioned. If you have older family members, ask them to tell you what life was like when they were growing up, about their siblings and parents, aunts and uncles, their chores, school, dating, and more. If they are past the point of writing the stories, do it yourself or pick another family member, but please have them written somewhere. Those stories are part of your family history.
The picture of the young family out in the snow shows us how memories are created. The little boy will most likely remember the time, or times, his family built a snowman on a cold day in the snow. Someday, he will tell his own children about the fun he had with Mom, Dad, and little sister.
When we attend a wedding or even a funeral, we are making family memories. When we look back, we should tell younger family members about the event. The same with picnics, fishing trips, road trips with a whole family cooped up in the family car, flying to an island resort with the family, the vacation when it rained the entire time, and more. Those memories are the stuff from which family stories are made. Don't waste them. Don't let them sink into your mind so deep that you forget them.
I really should tell my grandchildren about the time a painter left his paint cans and brushes where a little girl could easily see them and try them out. The painter had finished all the railings and steps on the three floors of the building where the little girl lived. The paint he''d left was for another project and a different color. That little girl pried open a paint can, dipped a brush, and proceeded to paint over the steps in a lovely color instead of the dull gray he'd used. The little girl got in a whale of trouble after the painter yelled at her mother. The little girl never touched paint cans again, and the painter never spoke to her when he saw her.
So, tell the stories and create memories. Share them with other family members. And please write those stories.
Tuesday, January 29, 2019 Original
July 5, 2021
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