Writing Your Life Story

Writing your life story is a gift for your children, grandchildren, and generations to come. Jeff Baker is an expert on this topic. I hope his blog post gets you thinking about how you can bless your family by sharing your story. xoBecky

Writing Your Life Story

If you are like me, you cherish those moments with your grandkids – playing in the park, watching school activities, conversing on a hike. These are special times when you help to nurture them in their developmental years. But there is more you can do. Write your life story.

“Oh, but that is too hard.”
“I don’t know where to begin.”
“I didn’t lead an interesting life.”

I’ve heard these and many more. But think about it… Your life story has already shaped your children and grandchildren in so many ways– some are apparent, while others are more subtle. Their story is intertwined with your life story – the values you hold, the experiences you’ve had, the choices you made, and the insights you’ve learned. As they read your story, they begin to understand more about who they are as individuals, how they came to hold certain beliefs, why they enjoy various activities, and more.

“Is writing one’s life story work?”  Yes.
“Will I need to rearrange some priorities of my time?”  Likely.
“Will it be satisfying for me?”  Way more than you can imagine.
“Where do I begin?”

First, lower your expectations – you are not writing to be on the New York Times Best Seller list, nor submitting this to your English teacher. Second, realize that your life story is not really known to your family – pieces here and there, yes – but not the rich mosaic of how you became “you.” Third, write with a goal in mind – five pages of text, maybe ten pages, possibly more. Fourth, know that writing your life story and leaving it as your gift to your family will be the most important and meaningful physical gift you can give to your family. They will connect and value the family heritage which they inherited, and thus will better understand their own life journey. Lastly, think about why you are doing it. Because you love your kids and grandkids.

The mouth of the righteous man utters wisdom,
and his tongue speaks what is just.
Psalm 37:30

Jeff Baker, MATS, MBA, was raised in the Twin Cities; married his lovely wife, Jolene, in 1979. He has two daughters, two son-in-laws, and six grandchildren. The Bakers were missionaries in Ethiopia for 14 years, where they raised their daughters. While living in Ethiopia, his interest in organizational history and family history emerged for the first time. For over 15 years, Jeff  has been working with individuals and families to organize and document their life stories and family history into a book for the current and future generations.

“My interest and work in personal legacies is based on my Christian convictions and experiences as a missionary in Ethiopia, which has a culture steeped in family bonds and oral communication. I believe one’s life experiences and legacy are partly shaped and continue to be shaped within a larger family system that spans generations before and after us. We tend to underestimate and often forget those historical influences whether subtle or obvious that contributed to our identity, interests, value and belief system, life purpose and vision, social relationships, etc. In essence, our life story is part of larger stories making up our nuclear and extended families. And all these ultimately fall within the largest story – God’s Kingdom unfolding over time. Through my work as an administrator and Bible teacher in Ethiopia, I saw that those individuals who remembered these principles had greater sensitivity and impact for the larger story of God’s work in individual lives. While in Ethiopia I first began to promote, both informally and formally, the remembering, documenting, preserving, and passing on of life stories (and organizational history).”

Read more about Jeff and his work at SagisLegacy.com.
Contact Jeff at jbaker@SagisLegacy.com or 763-536-3973.

© 2023 Becky Danielson. All rights reserved.

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A special thank you to guest blogger Jeff Baker for sharing his thoughts and experiences to encourage and inspire families.

Title photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash
All other photos by Jeff Baker