Write a Personal History

Introduction

A personal history is one way to leave a legacy that descendants will treasure for generations. As you create your personal history, you should make sure the information is accurate. If you leave someone else to rely on memories and secondhand stories to create your history, it may not reflect your life accurately. Resources and information in this lesson include:

Why Create a Personal History?

Ask yourself these questions—if your parents, grandparents, and other ancestors didn’t leave life histories, do you wish they had? Do you wish you could read about their lives? If you answer “yes,” then don’t leave your descendants to wish the same thing! A record of your life can be a great gift? Words in print can be read and reread, pondered over, and returned to. The words your teenager rejects now may become clear and precious when he or she rereads them later in life.

You could have a great effect on those who follow you. Your example, your trials, and your triumphs will strengthen and motivate others. The prophet Job of the Old Testament, who suffered many trials, mourned, “oh that my word were now written! Oh that they were printed in a book! That they were graven with an iron pen and lead in the rock for ever!” (Job 19:23–24). His words were written, and his triumph over tragedy and his faith have remained an example of devotion to people of the world for thousands of years.

Writing your history now can also provide you with an opportunity to evaluate your life. It may help you clarify your direction in life. Even if your childhood wasn’t idyllic, writing about it can help you cope with your feelings and possibly find understanding and forgiveness.

When Should I Create My Personal History?

Start writing your personal history now. Do not put off writing until you have more time or until you retire. You rarely have time to do all you want or need to do, an dyou never know how long you will live, so don’t procrastinate. No one else can write your personal history the way you can. The longer you wait to write it, the more details you will be likely to forget. This story is about your life, and it should be written by you. 2 When writing your history, set realistic and specific goals. For example, you could set a goal to complete a first draft in three months. A final draft could be ready for review in six months. In nine months, you could have a finished copy ready for photocopying and distribution to family members. Or it may be more realistic for you to write one chapter a week for the next 12 months or to write about one subject each week or to write one page a day. You can also write about different eras of life; preschool years, grade school years, high school, etc. Broken up into segments like these, makes the task easier to do. Do what you can, but do it regularly and consistently.

Different Types of Personal Histories

You can preserve your life history and memories in many ways. The following are a few ideas: A Written History For those who enjoy writing, a written biography is a great way to record your history. A written biography could include the following:

• Your personal account of events in your life.
• Photographs of events, friends, family members, homes you grew up in, places you’ve traveled, and other experiences of interest in your life.
• Copies of family records, such as your birth and marriage certificates, school records, diplomas, religious certificates, awards, and other records of interest.

Journals Journals are an excellent way of preserving history. Where a personal history tends to be broader in scope and generally covers a greater period of time, a journal can preserve the day-to-day or week-to-week events of your life. It provides a more intimate and detailed account of your daily experiences. Even though journal writing often covers many years of one’s life, it is easier for some people to accomplish because it consists of a small amount of time each day or week or rather than a large amount of time all at once. A journal will often cover more than just day-to-day activities in your life. It often contains insights, expressions of emotion, observations about events of the day and how they affect you and your family, musings, and so on. Many people also include drawings or photographs of people, places, and events in their journal, which can add an interesting dimension.

Record of Milestones Creating a record of milestones is like writing in a journal, except it tends to be less frequent. It’s a record of important events such as birthdays, weddings, anniversaries, deaths, life-changing experiences, and major accomplishments and includes a person’s feelings regarding the milestones. Some people use scrapbooks to chronicle their important milestones.

Electronic Recordings With the development of electronic devices, such as video equipment and tape recorders, recording history is easier than ever. Using electronic equipment to record your history, you can include much more than is typically found in a written history. An electronic record of your history could include the sound of your voice, the singing of songs, the playing of a musical instrument, or visual images.

If you use electronic equipment to record your history, understand that the medium you are using will deteriorate or become outdated. Tapes should be played once a year to prevent the sound from bleeding through the tape.

Computer discs, hardware, and software programs can become outdated with time. After a few years, you may have difficulty finding a computer or computer program that will read what you have recorded. You should review the medium you used on a regular basis. (Once a year is best.) Before it gets hard to find equipment to play or read what you have recorded, you should transfer your history onto an updated medium.

Expert Tip: If you plan to record your personal history electronically, be aware that electronic media does not retain quality for very long. Electronic recordings should be transcribed onto archival quality paper.