My dad had an amazing ability to tell stories about farm life in Kansas. My mom captivated her children with tales about being an immigrant family from Budapest. They were the great story tellers who impacted my life.
Like my dad and mom, I love telling family stories. After I retired from work, I found a writing class for senior citizens at a local senior center. I attended that class for three years. The stories I read in front of my classmates included many things I did with my grandchildren, such as fishing trips, deer hunting, planting an annual garden, and taking rides through the countryside. A good story teller, like Aesop, can make a great story out of the most mundane things.
I often write in the early afternoon when the sun is shining and I have a few quiet hours to myself. I mainly reflect on family events and jot down ideas on scrap paper as they occur to me. I refer to these notes later as I begin to build my next story. My wife, Grandma Barbara, proofreads my narratives to ensure I have the facts correct. I often include a photo with my writings to both enhance the impact of my story and make it more personal for my grandchildren and their parents. After all, “A picture is worth a thousand words.”
I have found that story-telling is a way to strengthen my relationship with our grandchildren whether I read the stories out loud to them or give them a bound book containing the written stories. Because my writings are often about basic virtues: honesty, kindness, patience, etc., they reinforce what their parents want to see in their children. I never include negative comments or activities in my stories.
Two of our older grandchildren told me they read every story I write when they receive their bound copy each Christmas. I have witnessed my grandchildren taking the truth expressed in these narratives and applying them in their own lives.
I strongly believe in the importance of preserving family stories as part of a family’s history and identity.
You, too, can use your stories to pass on the family baton of faith in Jesus Christ.
If you are interested in what inspires me and how I write my stories, you may contact me at mike.luea@gmail.com.
Mike Luea, 82 yrs. old, is a retired social worker. He and his wife, Barbara, are the grandparents of 27.