Sometimes the hardest part of any project is just getting started. Don’t worry about writing style or grammar at this point, just start writing! This month’s assignment is to write something about yourself, your parents, your siblings, grandparents, and any other important relatives in your life. Whew! That sounds like a lot! So here are some ideas to get you going!
Just start telling about YOU. What is your name? Where were you born? What is your birth date? Do you know how you got your name? How do you feel about it? Did you have a nickname? How did you get it? Do you still use it? How would you describe yourself to a total stranger? What is your spouse’s name? When were you married? How many children do you have? How many grandchildren do you have? What are their names?
What are your parents’ names? When and where did they meet?
Describe your mother. What does she look like? What color are her eyes? Hair color? How tall is she? How old is she? How would you describe her personality? Does she have any hobbies? What did you call her while you were growing up? What is your favorite memory of your mother? Where did your mother grow up? Where did she go to school? What kind of a family did she come from?
As if speaking to a close friend, describe your father. What does he look like (physical description)? Eye and hair color? Height? Does he have any distinguishing features? How would you describe his personality? Is he funny? Serious? Does he have any favorite sayings? What is his favorite past-time or hobbies? His favorite meal? Favorite TV show? Favorite football team? What did you call him while you were growing up? How did your school friends view your father? What is your favorite memory of your father?
List your siblings, when they were born and what their order is in the family. What are your favorite memories of each sibling? Were you close? What kind of relationship did you have while growing up? What kind of relationship do you have now that you are adults? Did you get into trouble together, or did you get each other into trouble?
What do you know about your grandparents lives? What do you personally remember about your grandparents? Can you remember any stories you heard about your grandparents when they were children? Do you remember any special stories your grandmother or grandfather told you?
Tell what you know or have heard about any of your ancestors.
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
Writing Tip #1
If you’re have trouble getting started, set the kitchen timer and write for 15 minutes. You can do anything for 15 minutes. Some days, you won’t hear the timer ring. If you don’t want to write each day, you may want to schedule a specific time each week to work on your history. Schedule it on your calendar, make an appointment with yourself and KEEP THAT APPOINTMENT!
New Year, New Goals
Is this the year you will write your personal history? Each month I will have a topic or category with some "memory triggers" to get you started thinking and writing.
Members of your family want to know more about you than you think. They will treasure every word you write. To them, you are the connection, the bridge between the remarkable past and the present. By writing your history you will be giving to others a gift of hope, of commitment to life and loved ones, a gift of affection. Your history is about the times you’ve live in, the people and events that helped shape you, how and who you’ve loved, what has stirred you, and how you’ve tried.
You may ask yourself, "what would anyone want to know about me?" What indeed! Each of us has an interesting and inspiring life, just waiting to be shared with others. A teenager might want to know, did her grandmother love music, did she dance, and to what music? A young sports enthusiast wonders, what games did grandfather play? A beginning cook longs for his/her mother’s recipes, and wonders if mother remembers any of grandmother’s recipes, or better yet, wrote them down.
We are surprisingly curious about these everyday details. Many of us also long for something more, something deeper. "I wanted to know," one person said, "not just what happened in Mother’s life, but what she felt when it was happening." It is the everyday joys and sorrows as well as the "big events" that provide the fertile connecting ground between generations.
Here is your chance to tell your story – to share your experiences and your feelings about those experiences. Part of your life may already be known to others, but don’t assume that what seems obvious to you will be familiar to them.
As you write your history, this gift you give to others will repay you many times over and could become the gateway to a wider vision of your life. Your reflections and responses can uncover a purpose you may not have know or realized, a resolution and awareness of your life’s fullness.
Good luck as you embark on this journey of writing your history, your Legacy – it will be a treasure for you and your family – the best gift you can give your loved ones!
So get your pencils sharpened or computer keys warmed up and let’s get started!
January: Who You Are
February: Beginnings and Childhood
March: Adolescence
April: Early Adult Years
May: Courtship and Marriage
June: Being a Parent
July: [none]
August: Middle Adult Years
September: Being a Grandparent/Later Adult Years
October: Reflections
November: Putting it All Together and Sharing Your Story
Members of your family want to know more about you than you think. They will treasure every word you write. To them, you are the connection, the bridge between the remarkable past and the present. By writing your history you will be giving to others a gift of hope, of commitment to life and loved ones, a gift of affection. Your history is about the times you’ve live in, the people and events that helped shape you, how and who you’ve loved, what has stirred you, and how you’ve tried.
You may ask yourself, "what would anyone want to know about me?" What indeed! Each of us has an interesting and inspiring life, just waiting to be shared with others. A teenager might want to know, did her grandmother love music, did she dance, and to what music? A young sports enthusiast wonders, what games did grandfather play? A beginning cook longs for his/her mother’s recipes, and wonders if mother remembers any of grandmother’s recipes, or better yet, wrote them down.
We are surprisingly curious about these everyday details. Many of us also long for something more, something deeper. "I wanted to know," one person said, "not just what happened in Mother’s life, but what she felt when it was happening." It is the everyday joys and sorrows as well as the "big events" that provide the fertile connecting ground between generations.
Here is your chance to tell your story – to share your experiences and your feelings about those experiences. Part of your life may already be known to others, but don’t assume that what seems obvious to you will be familiar to them.
As you write your history, this gift you give to others will repay you many times over and could become the gateway to a wider vision of your life. Your reflections and responses can uncover a purpose you may not have know or realized, a resolution and awareness of your life’s fullness.
Good luck as you embark on this journey of writing your history, your Legacy – it will be a treasure for you and your family – the best gift you can give your loved ones!
So get your pencils sharpened or computer keys warmed up and let’s get started!
January: Who You Are
February: Beginnings and Childhood
March: Adolescence
April: Early Adult Years
May: Courtship and Marriage
June: Being a Parent
July: [none]
August: Middle Adult Years
September: Being a Grandparent/Later Adult Years
October: Reflections
November: Putting it All Together and Sharing Your Story
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