It seems counter intuitive, but many older people don’t feel as if they have any stories to tell about their own lives. Maybe they just don’t want to remember, but I think the problem is we’ve been told not to brag or not to make ourselves center of attention for so long, that it feels unseemly to do so by writing memoirs.
But our stories are important. Generations to come will find there are similarities and themes imbedded in periods of time and they will perhaps learn lessons that will be helpful. And in the meantime, our children and grandchildren will gain a sense of family history and our brains will be nourished by the telling.
Here are ten prompts to help find the stories from your life:
1) Are you old enough to have a parent who served in WW11 and if so, do you remember homecomings or stories that were told, and what were your reactions?
2) Do you remember unusual dinner conversations with family, friends, colleagues, strangers? Can you describe when, where, what, why
3) When you look around the room, is there an object that reminds you of a different place and time
4) What were your favorite clothes during the 1960’s or any other decade? Why?
5) Have you moved over the years. Where to? Describe? Memories of the place? People? Why you moved?
6) What were your reactions to or involvement in political and historical events
a. Wars
b. World Trade Center Attack
c. Civil Rights
d. Women’s Rights
e. Gay Rights
f. Watergate
g. Recessions
h. Pandemic
i. Climate Change
ALL OF THE ABOVE and MORE
7) Where are you living now and why
8) What is it about getting older that makes you want to write about your life
9) Who was your closest childhood friend?
10) Do you have a hobby or skill that provides a creative outlet and if so, can you describe how it makes you feel or how/if it has enhanced your life
These are clearly random prompts, but I hope they are useful. Write paragraphs or whole chapters. See if a single prompt or a few together will provide focus for the structure of an entire memoir.
And let me know what you find.
Take care,
Mary Barrow