Oral/video histories

A friend posted a neat rememberance about his grandfather. That reminded me to mention oral (and video) histories to everyone: while it's nice to have memories of your parents or grandparents, getting them to sit down and tell those stories in front of a recorder is a forever-thing.

If you have any older relatives (or even not-so-old), grab a tape recorder (doesn't have to be fancy) and interview them-- ask them what life was like, what they did for fun, what they ate...particular moments they remember. Things that made them sad, things they thought were silly. It's priceless stuff that is too often lost forever.

Many of them will defer, telling you that they're too boring to record...but persevere and try. Both of you will be surprised at what comes out. Did your grandparents live through interesting periods? A war, The Great Depression, great events? Were your parents hippies? That kind of stuff is gold.

Studds Terkel made oral histories famous with his "Hard Times: An oral history of the Great Depression". Not everything they say is momentous, but you'll find gems in the rough that make it all worthwhile.

Oral/video histories

A friend posted a neat rememberance about his grandfather. That reminded me to mention oral (and video) histories to everyone: while it's nice to have memories of your parents or grandparents, getting them to sit down and tell those stories in front of a recorder is a forever-thing.

If you have any older relatives (or even not-so-old), grab a tape recorder (doesn't have to be fancy) and interview them-- ask them what life was like, what they did for fun, what they ate...particular moments they remember. Things that made them sad, things they thought were silly. It's priceless stuff that is too often lost forever.

Many of them will defer, telling you that they're too boring to record...but persevere and try. Both of you will be surprised at what comes out. Did your grandparents live through interesting periods? A war, The Great Depression, great events? Were your parents hippies? That kind of stuff is gold.

Studds Terkel made oral histories famous with his "Hard Times: An oral history of the Great Depression". Not everything they say is momentous, but you'll find gems in the rough that make it all worthwhile.

Oral/video histories

A friend posted a neat rememberance about his grandfather. That reminded me to mention oral (and video) histories to everyone: while it's nice to have memories of your parents or grandparents, getting them to sit down and tell those stories in front of a recorder is a forever-thing.

If you have any older relatives (or even not-so-old), grab a tape recorder (doesn't have to be fancy) and interview them-- ask them what life was like, what they did for fun, what they ate...particular moments they remember. Things that made them sad, things they thought were silly. It's priceless stuff that is too often lost forever.

Many of them will defer, telling you that they're too boring to record...but persevere and try. Both of you will be surprised at what comes out. Did your grandparents live through interesting periods? A war, The Great Depression, great events? Were your parents hippies? That kind of stuff is gold.

Studds Terkel made oral histories famous with his "Hard Times: An oral history of the Great Depression". Not everything they say is momentous, but you'll find gems in the rough that make it all worthwhile.