Image via Wikipedia
I read an essay, Lessons Beyond Words by Darren Yourk, on the Globe and Mail website. It’s subtitled, While thrashing me at Scrabble, Grandma did more than expand my vocabulary. She shared our family’s story. Yourk’s piece is both humorous and touching. Here’s an excerpt… Read more.
Posted in Personal historian, Tips, Life stories
Tagged Tips, Life stories, reflection, life lessons, wisdom, family stories, family history, scrabble, elders, Recreation
In this Monday’s Link Roundup I found PANTONE: A Color History of the 20th Century a reminder of the important role of color in our memories. The book looks gorgeous. It’s definitely on my Santa Claus list. Anyone want to play Santa? 
If you enjoyed this post, get free updates by email.
Last year I had the privilege of hearing First Nation elder STOLȻEȽ ( John Elliot) of the WASÁNEĆ (Saanich) territory address the 16th Annual APH Conference in Victoria, B.C. He spoke reverently of the stories that were passed down to him about the land and sea and animals and the values to live by… Read more.
Our people lived as part of everything. We were so much a part of nature, we were just like the birds, the animals, the fish. We were like the mountains. Our people lived that way. We knew there was an intelligence, a strength, a power, far beyond ourselves. We knew that everything here didn’t just happen by accident.
~ David Elliott Sr. (Saltwater People, School District 63 (Saanich, 1990)
Last year I had the privilege of hearing First Nation elder STOLȻEȽ ( John Elliot) of the WASÁNEĆ (Saanich) territory address the 16th Annual APH Conference in Victoria, B.C. He spoke reverently of the stories that were passed down to him about the land and sea and animals and the values to live by.
I was moved by his dedication to his people and by the importance he places on the preserving and recording of their stories. Too often I find myself caught up in the mechanics of my work as a personal historian. There’s marketing to do, blog articles to write, and deadlines to meet. I forget about the sacredness of our work. And by sacred I don’t mean religious. I mean knowing someone deeply, being touched by our common humanity, and venerating the interconnectedness of all life.
What can we do to rekindle the “sacred” in our work? Here are some thoughts.
We need to connect regularly with our own past and show reverence for our elders. This might mean ending or starting each day with some personal expression of remembrance and gratitude for family members who hold a special place in our hearts. It could mean being mindful of the elders in our community and extending a smile or helping hand.
We need to take time out from our busyness for reflection. We need to connect to our sacred moments. Find a space where you can sit quietly and recall a sacred moment in your life. Remember what was happening and how it felt. Let that moment wash over you.
There’s a Bantu expression, Ubuntu, which translates as I am because you are; you are because I am. It speaks to our interconnectedness as human beings. When I’m working with clients, I’m aware that some part of their stories touches my own.
We need to find a statement that gets to the heart of what we do as personal historians. It’s not just words to use in a tag line but a touchstone that can remind us of why this work is sacred. Start by writing, “I am a personal historian because I believe that…”. Play around with phrases until you have an Ah-Ha! moment. For me that moment came when I wrote, “I am a personal historian because I believe that preserving memories is an act of love.” Whenever I lose my way, I try to remember that statement and why I’m doing this work.
We know how much we learn from listening to our clients’ stories. But how many of us have actually told our clients this in writing? Too often I’m guilty of not taking the time to pen a thank you note that acknowledges the wisdom that I’ve gained from my clients.
I have a file where I keep the letters of appreciation I’ve received from clients and their families over the years. It also includes excerpts from personal histories that particularly touch me. When I need a pick-me-up, I go to that file and read through the collection. It reminds me of why I do this work and reconnects me to the sacred.
We do not believe in ourselves until someone reveals that deep inside us something is valuable, worth listening to, worthy of our trust, sacred to our touch.
~ e. e. cummings
Photo by Cornelia Kopp
If you enjoyed this post, get free updates by email.
Posted in Ancestors, How to, Inspiration, Life stories, Personal historian
Tagged elders, First Nations, How to, Inspiration, oral history, Personal historian, rekindle, sacred, stories, storytelling
Keepsake by Marilyn Koop is a must-have for your library. A friend gave me a copy the other day and I’ve been totally captivated by it. Each page contains a photograph of time-worn hands cradling a loved keepsake. On the page opposite is a cameo history of the person, a brief story behind the keepsake, and words of advice. There are twenty portraits in the collection. All save two were of people living at the Wellington Terrace, an assisted care residence near Fergus, Ontario.
"This little cup and saucer was given to me by my great-grandmother on my second birthday when we were still in England. My mother used to threaten me: "What might happen to your little cup and saucer if you don't behave?" Winifred Banbury
Marlene Creates, a Newfoundland environmental artist and poet has written of the book:
When objects are keepsakes, they relate most to our hands and our sense of touch. In Marilyn Koop’s photographs, hands are as eloquent as faces. On first glance, many of the cherished objects being held by these elderly people seem quite modest … But on reading these elders’ stories, it turns out that…[these keepsakes] are important not because of their monetary value but because of their history and meaning. I am struck by the profound human caring and gratitude in these stories. The keepsakes are stand-ins for lost loved ones and times past. Through Marilyn Koop’s photographs and the brief life stories she has gathered, we are given the real value of these keepsakes.
"Henry carved this bar of soap on our honeymoon night in Niagara Falls." Agnes Koop
As a personal historian, I see a number of ways Keepsake can be of value:
Contact Marilyn Koop directly at: [email protected]
Price: Cdn $24.00 includes postage and handling.
_________________________________________
Images by permission of Marilyn Koop Copyright 2009
If you enjoyed this post, get free updates by email.
Posted in Book reviews, Life stories, Memoirs, Personal historian
Tagged elders, family keepsake, Keepsake, Marilyn Koop, memories, photo book
The other day in Zoomer magazine I read an interview with the English actress Emma Thompson. When asked what made her unhappy, she said:
That, much to our great loss, we’ve turned away from the notion of elders, of wisdom. It’s an absolute disaster for the old and the young. It leads to fractures everywhere. But mostly a fracture in our concept of what it is to be human.
I’m reminded that in recording and preserving an older person’s life story we are engaged in important work. We are honoring an elder. We are saying to that person, you count. Your life holds lessons for me and future generations. I value your story and don’t want it lost. What a wonderful difference it would make in our communities if all our older citizens had the opportunity to tell their story. We would indeed become a more humane society. What are you doing to capture an elder’s life story?
Here are four books that demonstrate the wisdom and spirit of older people. Click on the title for more information.
Photo by John Mueller
Posted in Interviewing, Life stories, Preservation, Writing
Tagged elders, Emma Thompson, Life stories, preserving, wisdom
