Song of Yourself

Lately, my dad has been telling my sister and me stories from when we were little: pranks that we pulled on unsuspecting new parents, the times we were difficult, the cute things we said, the terrible messes that we made. I think he’s feeling the passing of time. It won’t be long until I’ll be leaving home for good, and my sister soon to follow.

Help someone know the song of their past; remind them of times they may have forgotten. Speaking from the perspective of a child, I find that many of the family stories I "know" are not things that I actually remember – I was too young to recall when they first happened. But with subsequent telling, it becomes a part of me, and I can see how it must have been. It is a wonderful way to establish a connection – to yourself, and to your family.

Not to mention that any form of story-telling is good practice for writers! Pick up an interview or autobiography of almost any writer, and they will tell you that they were known from an early age to tell a story, any kind of story, to anyone who would sit still long enough to hear it. So go ahead and reminisce; you might find good material in those old anecdotes.