Storyworth is the gift that keeps on giving
When Christmas and birthdays roll around each year, I find myself being completely perplexed about what to get my dad as a gift. It’s not that he doesn’t have a million interests, but like I’m sure someone you know, he buys things as he needs them or wants them. What I do know about him is he’s an amazing storyteller and remembers so many details! That combined with his interests in genealogy and photo albums prompted me to give him the perfect gift! With the gift of Storyworth, he has been able to relive memories and finally record them in a place where they can be shared with the rest of us.
One book turned into a trilogy
The journey began last year on Christmas and has continued throughout the year. I think most people probably wrap it up during that time, but my dad has just begun! In fact, I just renewed his subscription for an additional year, and what started off as one book will end as a trilogy. The project has gone from answering prompt questions to an actual chronological account of his life! Unknown to me, he kept past written letters and journals that I had no idea existed. With those he has reconstructed the past with incredible detail. In addition to the written words, he includes pictures, some of which I have seen for the first time!
How it works
- You sign up and give a subscription as a gift. I’ve included a link below that you can use and receive $10 off.
- Once a week you can choose a queation to inspire your loved one to write. It can come from an available library of questions or you can make up your own.
- At the end of the year, all their stories are bound into a beautiful keepsake book. You can order multiple copies if you want.
Just ask my dad
In my dad's words:
I began writing my story in January 2022. It was easy to get started because I simply responded to the questions provided by the Storyworth program. Eventually, I decided to tell my story in a chronological way without using prompts. The collection of photographs, letters, and journals I kept are helpful, but sometimes I find they interfere with my actual memories of an event. The program also allows one to include photographs and documents so I often include these items to illustrate my story.
"Everything in life is so interconnected"
It is interesting to see how one memory prompts another, so that my final account is going to be far more detailed than I ever thought possible in the beginning. My story turns out to also be the story of my wife and my children. Everything in life is so interconnected. One discovers how one situation leads to another, and often what I thought was a carefully considered decision was inevitable when one looks at it in retrospect.
"A book about me is a book about them"
I have enjoyed thinking about and “reliving” the adventures of growing up in a small town, college life, and my various military assignments all over the world. Of course, not all memories are happy memories. One should be prepared to recall events that were perhaps things you would prefer to forget. It’s important to know who I am and where I came from and writing my story has helped me make sense of past events. I wish so very much that my parents and other ancestors had better preserved their memories. My hope is that some of my descendants may one day find my book interesting, because in some important ways, a book about me is a book about them.