life-history-videos.com

Life History Videos - Only for Seniors?

May 5th, 2010

I once approached an uncle of mine about being the subject of a Life History Video. He said, “Not ’till I’ve got one foot in the grave”. That’s a sentiment that does come up when approaching some potential subjects for your next Life History Video. In fact when I started all of this, I too thought that I would only make videos of “grandparent” age type people. Little did I know how personal events would unfold that would change my thinking. I thought that since I had envisioned sitting down with my own grandparents when I came up with the original interview questions, that’s the age group the interview was designed for.

In October several years ago, a close personal friend came up to me with tears in her eyes. She said, “the cancer’s gotten worse and the docs have told me to give the boys their Christmas gifts now because I probably won’t be here in two months. And the thing is - I want you to make a Life History Video of me”. Well no one 25 years old had ever asked about a Life History Video for them. I’m sure I stammered for a moment, but there was no way I could turn her down.

So we set a date and a few weeks later I conducted the interview for her Life History Video. The amazing thing is, I had to change very few questions to make the interview appropriate for her age. She blew me away with her stories even though I thought I was a pretty close friend. The video became an important family heirloom and the best news of all….she was invited to participate in a radical cancer treatment therapy which saved her life. She has gone on to a career in nursing, working in the Oncology (Cancer) department with children. Talk about a great ending to my story.

The point is, no matter how old your are, we have all lived through some amazing things and have developed a pretty strong opinion about the world around us. Even young people have important, valuable and intriguing stories to tell.

I had a couple who asked me to come back 10 years after we had recorded their Life History Video to do another one. They said that so much had changed in their lives… their experience and perspective that they wanted to go through the questions again. The amazing thing for their family is that the kids feel like there are so many unique answers on both videos, they both continued to be watched by the children in the family.

So I have come to the conclusion that it’s not like my Uncle thinks.

Life History Videos can capture the unique viewpoints we hold as we go through life. Portraits of our personalities, at important stages.

I have Life History Videos of one set of grandparents, my parents, all my siblings. We have my wifes’ parents, grandparent, aunt & uncle, siblings. Regardless of age, we wanted to get these videos made of everyone…now.

So the moral of this story is, don’t let age be a hang-up to doing a Life History Video….just do it!!!

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To Blog or Not to Blog

April 20th, 2009

Lately, I’ve had several great discussions with folks via e-mail concerning Life History Videos. I have gently tried to suggest that we continue our conversations on the blog so others can learn and find inspiration from our question and answer periods. So far I haven’t done very well.

So I asked a few of the people who I had been in e-mail contact with if they had reservations about conversing on the blog as opposed to e-mail. I thought the answers were quite interesting. What I got from more than one person was that whenever they attempted to blog somewhere else on a topic that was new for them, or one where they had little experience, they were at times made to feel uncomfortable by some of the “experts” or other bloggers.

It was reported that rather than getting help, their comment was used as a launching pad for others to demonstrate their vast knowledge, or as the butt of the joke from the “regulars”. Some people felt that instead of promoting a discussion, the net effect was to keep “newbies” in their place or off the blog altogether. I think we all know that these are most likely the exceptions rather than the rule. But it doesn’t really take that many rude responses to dampen the spirit of a lot of folks who could benefit from a mature discussion.

Just so everyone knows, we review each comment submitted for posting. This blog is here to help everyone. We want to ensure that every interested person will be welcome here. We have put a lot of basic information in our book so as not to assume the experience level of our audience. We promise to respond to each comment in a positive, informative and encouraging manner. And furthermore we will not allow any responses or comments that do otherwise.

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I do realize there my be some topics that are not appropriate or too sensitive to share with everyone that still may generate a question. I am always available via email for any discussions that may need to be kept private. Use email if you are in any way uncomfortable blogging. We don’t want to discourage email contact while trying to make this point.

I’ve got a lot of important topics I plan on blogging about over the next several weeks, but I felt I had to take a moment because as we gain momentum, our success will depend on how well we help and encourage our audience. As much experience as Kate and I have had with this topic, we still need the input of others. It doesn’t matter where you are in this process. We want to again invite you to come and share your questions, experiences and solutions as you become part of a growing number of personal video historians who will change how we communicate and preserve our family culture and heritage, one life at a time.

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Save the Story of A Lifetime

September 16th, 2008

Most everyone would agree that a lifetime of learning and experience are considered priceless. Doesn’t it follow that we would want to do a better job of capturing this information from our loved ones, who have often paid a personal price or investment in either time or energy or both for this knowledge, perhaps over a number of years?I was speaking with a friend today about her son’s upcoming wedding. She said it’s hard for them (the bride & groom) to realize that the people attending their wedding will not always be with us. She then went on to tell me about a favorite family dessert her grandmother made. And now that grandma is gone, no one seems to have the recipe, so she has made sure that all of her recipes are documented and distributed.

As we talk about in the book, for generations, people have been able to pass on experiences via pictures and some few through writing about them. We are the first generation to be able to share also the very words and mannerisms of our precious relatives and friends via video. We know that by documenting these Life Stories now, we will be giving our subjects the satisfaction of knowing what they have learned and enjoyed in their time will not be forgotten, and that was the original motivation. It also leads me to believe that we may also be enriching the lives of future generations, as they will be the first to experience the personalities of family members they may have never met. I don’t know about you, but that thought really gets me going!

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Holidays Are An Incredible Opportunity

September 8th, 2008

Hey All,

Even though it’s just the first week in September, thinking ahead is sometimes the only way to stay “up” in this jam-packed life most of us lead these days. Even though it seems a ways off, I wanted to talk about the holidays in relation to Life History Videos.

Each year is a special opportunity to share videos already made and to seize the moment to interview other important people you may have limited, if any access to the rest of the year round.

As I mention in the book, it is easiest to get a new subject to say yes by showing them a Life History Video of someone else. Their first reaction may not be enthusiasm, but seeing exactly what you are talking about can demystify the process for many people.

Again, we think we’ve done a pretty good job in the book of telling you how to initiate a proposal to video someone and the holidays are no exception. Let me tell you what I think you shouldn’t do. You shouldn’t wait until your are at your holiday destination to bring up a Life History Video. As we tell you in the book, you will want to make contact several weeks in advance. Prepare your approach and if necessary enlist others. Part of “the craft” of this stage is to let them know how important it is without making it sound like too big of a production.

People have lots of priorities during the holidays, so value their time by letting them know exactly how much time you expect this to take. Hint: You better be rehearsed and have it worked out ahead of time. If you blow this with one family member, it could make it tough to capture all of the videos over the next few years you would like to have. On the flip side, if you do what you say you are going to do in the time frame you say you will do it, then a good effort during the interview will give you a remarkable video that can be used to inspire the rest of the family to contribute their memories to the family archives.

Family archives. Wow, it’s crazy to think that up until recently, pictures and written accounts were the only way to “create” family archives. A few years ago it was audio recordings and now we can record our Loved ones in High Definition living color. We can hear their laugh and see their smile. It’s a beautiful thing.

One of the issues I have had over the years has been the challenge of getting people to actually sit down to watch the videos. To be brutally honest, the only time there has been an urgency in our family to have or watch a video has been when we have lost that family member. The rest of the time, they are nice to have, but no one feels a sense of urgency to watch. My years of experience has shown me that if you can get someone to sit down for 10 minutes, many of those people will get engaged in the video in that amount of time and will want to watch the rest of the interview. Now during the holidays, on our big get-together day, I will get a Life History DVD of one our family members playing, NOT in the main room, but in a side room so it’s an “option” and not detracting from the other conversations and activities.

It’s a real kick to see people drift into the room. And I suppose the best part about this is that you get to watch the videos with either the subjects or the other family members that know them best. Let me tell you, it’s a fantastic payoff to watch your loved ones enjoying a video that is only there because of your vision and efforts. I have never regretted the time I have spent on making any of the Life History Videos I have created for my family.

Till next time…

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This Game Needs Players

February 6th, 2008

You know the craziest part about preserving Life Histories has always been that we have to spend time and effort, sometimes years in advance before the value of our efforts become clear. In fact, even at the risk of overstating the case, I don’t believe at this point in time we can know the impact.

Just think back when your Great Uncle Ed was posing for that black and white picture out in the hay fields. Think he knew how valuable that could be 3 generations later? That a future relative would glean whatever they could from that picture in order to know themselves better by learning more about where they came from?

Or Grandma Alice putting away letters from her sister, thinking the only value would be for her to re-read them from time to time. And why did she want to read them again? Why to maintain the memories of her “feelings”.

Even for her, the reliving of her Sister’s thoughts from an earlier time in her life was important. As time continues to speed up, how important will it be to know what we can of where we came from?

Keeping in mind those “feelings” that were so important for Grandma Alice to remember. How important do you think she would say a Life History Video of a loved one could be? To those who came before the advent and common use of video cameras…do you think they might want to tell you that to have this opportunity to capture the look, laugh, thoughts and feelings of your loved ones is something of vital importance?

No, as I think about it, I’m more convinced than ever that the investment we make in time and effort now to create Life History Videos of as many of our loved ones as we can is not only the right thing to do. But ultimately, for us, our kids, their kids and society, it remains one of the best things we can do…for the future.

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Welcome To Life History Videos

April 7th, 2007

Incredible! After literally decades of developing this project we are extremely excited to announce the beginning of what we hope will be a historic, interactive conversation about how we remember our loved ones and pass on our family heritage.

Posted in General | 4 Comments »

life-history-videos.com

Life History Videos - Only for Seniors?

To Blog or Not to Blog

Save the Story of A Lifetime

Holidays Are An Incredible Opportunity

This Game Needs Players

Welcome To Life History Videos

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