Services like Ancestry.com are becoming very popular. Now more than ever people want to know where they came from and who their family members were. Archiving information is a great way to help future generations know about their relatives and therefore, more about themselves.
Your life experiences from birth until death are filled with important milestones and anecdotal stories that are of interest to your family. Your children, grandchildren, and generations to come have an interest in what your life is like and what challenges and triumphs you had. Why not take the time to preserve these memories?
There are a lot of ways to keep records for your family. Here are a few ideas you may want to consider:
Keep a binder with important records: You can organize a binder filled with copies or original documents that may come in handy for your heirs. Some ideas may include:
- Birth certificates
- Death certificates
- Marriage licenses
- Passports
- Medical records
- Military records
Generally anything that can help your family clearly trace back lineage or vital statistics will be valuable for future generations.
Keep diaries or journals: You may have been keeping a diary or journaling for a while. Consider collecting them and keeping them in one space so they can be easily found. Your stories, thoughts, and insights might be educational, entertaining, and help your family understand you like never before.
Organize photos and videos: Your family photos and home video will surely be a treasure for those who love you and those who will hear about you in the future. Make sure your photos are labeled with the names of the people in the images and the dates and locations whenever possible.
Keep a collection of keepsakes: If you enjoy writing, painting, or have any examples of your work, it will be a treasure for those who love you. Keep a selection of your work for your family to appreciate.
Write a book or story: Writing an autobiography is an excellent way to share your life’s story and your thoughts about it. What a wonderful way to explain how you lived your life and the adventures you encountered along the way. Stories about your childhood, education, love life, children, and grandchildren will be invaluable for your family someday.
Keeping family records not only makes common sense, it will warm the hearts of your family when they want to remember you. Archiving your family documents can help people with their own medical history and help generations to come feel connected to the past. The effort is well worth the joy this task will bring.
