Feeling Disconnected. . . How Grandpa’s Stories Can Root You In Reality

I have a vision in my head of what the old days looked like. Maybe it was my early exposure to one too many Andy Griffith and Leave it to Beaver episodes, but I assume that families were closer back then. You were taught your family history sitting in a porch swing, listening to Grandpa weave the colorful events of his life into an interesting and insightful tale. Today, most people would be telling Grandpa to pipe down while they answered their cell phone.

It can not be argued that our family life, how we relate and how we remember has changed dramatically over the last fifty years. In this age of faster everything, overbooked schedules and jet setting lifestyles, the fabric of family life has been stretched as thin as an old pair of gym socks. Even though the days are just as long as ever, it seems our collective mantra is “Not enough time.” If you don’t think you even have enough time to brush your teeth, how could you ever find time for Grandpa’s stories?

Oral tradition- which once was the very bedrock of our culture- is withering and dying on the vine of life. Knowing who your family was, where they came from and what, individually and collectively, they faced in their lives allowed people to be rooted in a constantly evolving web of life. Once you stop sharing, talking and, most importantly, listening, you cut yourself adrift from this web and you feel disconnected.

We will never go back to those days sitting on some porch talking the night away and that is alright. In many respects, it probably wasn’t all that great anyway. But we do need to continue to connect, sustain and celebrate who, what and where we come from. Grandpa’s stories have the power to teach, guide and entertain you. A person’s story, any person from young to old, is important. It is their very essence. Upon hearing a person’s story, you will forever carry them with you.

I ask you all to start putting our technological dependence to good use. I am not just talking about playing games on your cellphone while waiting at a bus stop, but something far more important and longer lasting. Begin using your video camera to capture your elder relatives life stories.

It’s a simple process. The hardest part is setting aside the time to listen. It can be as easy as setting up the camera, asking the questions and filming the results. The picture is not as important as the words. If you begin to re-connect to your family through this process I promise it will pay off more and more as the years go by. The video you create will be important today, but in the years to come it will be a treasured family heirloom.