Our grandparents play such a vital role in determining who we are in life, so of course, it makes sense that when the holidays arrive, we want to think of Christmas gift ideas for grandparents that make a true difference in their lives as well. What could be more personally rewarding than the gift of legacy writing? Legacy writing is writing down on paper the story of someone's life for the benefit of the individual being immortalized, but also for our current and future family members who, for centuries to come, can intimately know their family and where they came from as a result.
For example, what have been your grandparents' most touching moments? What have been their silliest? When did they fall flat on their faces? What were their proudest accomplishments? Who took their breath away?
Legacy writing provides the opportunity to go on the journey of rediscovery. How often in our lives do we get the chance to be surrounded by a group of expert interviewers who will ask question after question about our lives, our choices, our accomplishments, our fears, our desires, our successes, and our pains? What would it feel like to present these legacy writing experiences as your Christmas gift ideas for grandparents this year? What would it feel like for you to see all of their friends and close family recount stories of their greatest memories and then get those stories on paper in a way that embodies their heart, their spirit, their soul?
We're talking about a life-changing journey for the entire family! Christmas gift ideas for grandparents are not easy to come by, but this one is so worthwhile. So how do you start with this legacy writing? The process can be done by a very caring member of the family, or you can work with a ghost writer who is trained in asking such questions and digging out the gems that belong in the book. If you want to go it alone, start by scheduling the conversations and be prepared to record them, either on audio or video cassette. Set up the appointments, get your grandparents talking, ask lots of juicy questions, and compile the information! Then set up times to speak with their neighbors, their friends, the people who knew them best and talk to them. Connect with long-ago friends. Ask each person to tell their favorite stories about your grandparents.
All in all, you'll need between 100 and 200 hours of interviews to compile the information into a book. You can set it all up based on chronology, or you can get creative in terms of piecing it together. What is most important is that you use these Christmas gift ideas for grandparents starting with this holiday to get them excited about the process. This way, you can give the actual book as a Christmas gift ideas for grandparents next year.
Your grandparents are very special people. When it is time to think about Christmas gift ideas for grandparents, I hope that you will pursue legacy writing. Here's to a Merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year!
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Corey Blake the co-author of EDGE! A Leadership Story (Morgan James, 2008), is President of Writers of the Round Table, Inc., a strategic literary development company that assists authors, directors, executives, and publishers to generate writing content of substantial quality and bring it to market. Visit us at Writers of the Round Table for a free quote on how we can help you begin YOUR legacy writing journey.
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