One Simple Step Towards Documenting Your Family History

Timing is everything when faced with interest in learning about our family history, isn’t it? It seems many of us aren’t incredibly interested in such things in our youth and by the time we begin to get the itch, many of our elders have already passed. So, how do we strike a balance? Well, if you’re here in this space with me now I’d wager a guess you have found an interest (even a tiny one) and may or may not be ready to fully dive in so I’m going to offer a simple suggestion: Begin by documenting the facts and stories passed down in your family.

As I mentioned in my post 7 Topics to Include When Writing About Your Family History , there are a myriad of ways with which to undertake this project, especially in our modern times filled with all the purchasing options and blog posts featuring 100 Questions to Ask Your____ , I’m going to pose one simple step towards documenting your family history today and your supply list is super short:

• A notebook (a spiral works just fine)

• A pen or pencil.

Of course, if you prefer to use the computer, save the $5 and just start a word document to save to your desktop for easy access.

Your task? Simply start writing down anything that comes to mind that might be important to documenting your family history.

So, grab your notebook and put it somewhere handy, somewhere that you’ll see often and therefore remember to write in.

Then, as memories come up about stories you’ve heard in the past, write them down.

And as conversations happen with family members, write down any important details or questions that have come up since the conversation.

You may also have specific questions you’d like to ask a specific family member that you’ll want to write down so you don’t forget when the time comes to ask.

You can also use your notebook to write down important dates that you remember or that come up (birthdays, anniversaries, graduations, etc).

The point here is to keep it simple and easy so you actually do it 🙂

As you get more comfortable with the process of documenting your family’s history and informational tidbits you may decide to invest in another form of documentation (like the Notes app on your phone) or adapt your methods of documentation, which is wonderful! The first step is the one that gets you going!

Additionally, as you dive deeper into your interest in family history you’ll begin to use these oral histories as a way to prove or disprove information that’s been passed down.

Remember, as glorious as our memories are, the human memory is faulty.

I also want to stress that however you decide to document your family (no matter how complicated your family might be), is such a profound and important experience not only for you, but for all the younger generations bouncing about now or that have yet to bounce into your lineage.

And trust me when I say, this all comes from a place of personal reflection, there is no judgement here. There are many people I wish I’d asked more questions of when they were still alive, but I either didn’t have the time or interest while they were here or I didn’t have the courage to do so in a given moment.

I occasionally shake my head at my younger self (and by “younger self” that also applies to 40 year old me, not just 20 year old me) while also offering myself a bit of grace by honoring where I was, what I was comfortable asking, and who each relative was.

And yes, there are answers to questions now that I will never have, and I’ve just had to find some peace with that.

But there are also answers to questions that I did ask and got answers for (even if my voice shook when I asked and I was told some things were “private”/potentially damaging to…who knows what) that I am so very grateful to have now…

From a prized family cookie recipe…

To an “incident” that happened decades ago that had a profound impact on an entire family unit…

To the content of an ancestor’s character who died well before I was born but did big things quietly while he was alive.

And so, in thinking about how to begin documenting your family history, the answer is simply to start. Grab a notebook (or start that Word document), begin with a single date or memory and slowly build from there. I promise it will become a valuable process for you and your family and may even lead you down a path you have yet to even imagine.

Onward,

Melis