Before They Forget: Record Your Elders' Stories Before It's Too Late

What you will experience

Your grandmother knows things that no book has ever written down. How your family ended up where they are. Why your surname means what it means. What happened during the war, the move, the famine, the miracle that kept the family going. She knows the name of the village your great great grandfather was born in. She knows why your family doesn't speak to that other branch anymore. She knows the prayer that's been said over every firstborn for four generations. And she's getting older. And you keep meaning to ask. And you never do because there's always next time. Until there isn't. This experience teaches you how to interview your elders before their stories leave with them. I'll show you the art of drawing out the memories that matter. Not by sitting them down with a camera and saying "tell me about your life" because that freezes people. But through gentle conversation. Through the questions that open doors. "What did your mother smell like." "What was the first thing you bought with your own money." "Tell me about a time you were afraid." "What did you pray for when you were my age." I'll teach you how to record properly. Audio, video, what equipment to use, how to set up so the sound is clear and the lighting is kind. How to organise what you capture so it's not just a file on your phone you'll never find again but an actual archive your family can keep forever. We'll practice on each other first. You'll be amazed what comes out of your own mouth when someone asks the right question. Then you'll go home and do this with the person you came here thinking about. The one whose voice you want your children to hear long after they're gone. This is for anyone with a grandparent, parent, or elder whose story is still untold. For families who know they're running out of time. For anyone who's ever lost someone and wished they'd recorded just one more conversation. For anyone who understands that when an elder dies, a library burns. Don't wait. The stories are ready. They've been ready for years. They're just waiting for someone to finally sit down and listen.

Access and participation

Meeting point