Colleen Acker, CareWell BeWell Activities Coordinator
Remember when your aunt dressed up like a rapper and danced to a hip-hop song at the family holiday gathering? Remember the story about when your grandfather was in the war and found a cave full of weaponry on an island in the Pacific? Do you remember when your mom traveled with the singing group and sang at the Governor’s mansion? Stories like these are often shared by families and friends, becoming part of a common history. Sometimes we take for granted that our colorful and informative tales will always be available. Oral tradition is an intimate and treasured way of passing along memorable events, however, told over time, the stories can lose their integrity or be lost all together. Luckily, we live in an age where there are many options to retain these precious stories. Here are just a few easy ways to preserve conversations, stories, and family history.
Story Corps
Story Corps is an audio platform that has an array of options to record an interview, many are free. The interview can take place online or in person. Their website offers all the information to choose what works best for you. I used Story Corps Connect to record an online interview with my 84-year-old aunt in another state. My cousin was with her to help with some of the tech and I provided the questions prior to our session so she could prepare. We had a lovely conversation about her childhood, my dad, and her teaching days.
Here’s how it works:
- Plan your conversation: Pick 6-8 questions of your own or use the Story Corps Great Questions List. Plan for 40 minutes.
- Join the Community: You and your partner need to make an account and log in.
- Record: Pick a time and send the interview link to your partner.
- Preserve it for History: When you are done, save the interview and add a title.
- Share: You can choose to make it available to the public or only family and friends. The recording is stored in the Story Corps Archives and the Library of Congress.
Storyworth
If the idea of an audio recording makes you a little nervous, Storyworth could be a better option. This service sends a weekly email story prompt for one year. What was your favorite trip? What things do you think you cannot live without? Do you have any regrets? The responses are used to create a hardcover book to preserve the memories for years to come. If the recipient is not comfortable with email, answers could be dictated into the format.
Do it yourself (DIY)
The DIY method is always an option for the self-motivated and independent types. Buy a nice journal, ask family and friends to provide some questions or look up ideas online. If you have a YouTube channel, record your own video, and post it for posterity. You could create an audio file using numerous phone apps and store it on the cloud while sharing with others to store on their own devices. The technology portion is always a good draw for the younger set and could create an intergenerational project. You will be preserving history and making new memories at the same time!
This is not a comprehensive list of the ways you can preserve stories, but hopefully it is enough to inspire you to begin planning. Our lives are rich with family folklore, hard knocks history, and friendly farces. Start a conversation and save it for generations to come.
