It’s Family History Month – August 2016
Well it’s almost one year on from posting this blog asking the question “what if?” and I’m blogging again with an update. The Northern Beaches Council has made August 2016 Family History Month and I’m working with the Family History Group to share the family knowledge process in two workshops.
The Family Knowledge triangle of success. Number 1 scan it. Number 2 Know Educate Enrich and Present it. Number 3 Repeat it.
Preparing for the workshop has given me time to write on the journey that Soul Assets has shown me and share what shape my family archive is in now. I’ve caught up in creating my family journal for my marriage group now. By using the 15 journal codes and a simple Excel spreadsheet I’ve managed to integrate 7,000 digital images with 820 journal entries covering 18 years of my marriage family group code. I journal now once every quarter and make sure I copy the digital images from phones, iPads and cameras and any scanned documents into the family archive.
I’m looking forward to presenting my process to the family history groups in Mona Vale and Manly this month. Still the most important message for me is contained within this blog called what if?
Having digitized all our important family history documents, photos and a journal on three separate hard disks has given me the freedom I was longing for in 2013.
I hope you have had some inspiration from the book and website and that you are working with your family to preserve your own family knowledge.
Northern Beaches Family History Month Flyer
Escape from Family Heritage Island with a family classification system.
Article: Sept 3, 2015.
I was saddened to read and watch this story of a family man who had a prized possession stolen from his home. Sometimes our prized family possessions can be lost, stolen, destroyed or given away. I hope that the medals and flag is retrieved and returned back to this family.
CBS Los Angles: Local Army Sgt. First Class Brought To Tears After Theft Of Irreplaceable Keepsakes
We can all understand the anxiety of losing a family possession that we wanted kept in the family. It’s as if some of us have taken on the role of a curator of a museum, and we’re responsible for keeping the “family knowing” of the item. And more importantly, we have the unspoken task of passing that knowing and keepsake onto a descendent or close friend. Asking the “what if ?” and “if only?” questions are hard once an item has been stolen, lost, given away, sold or destroyed.
The Family Knowledge Process puts an umbrella over your prized possessions and the family knowing you hold.
A virtual digital image can be placed into a consistent group classification system for future family to know before a possession is lost, stolen, given away, sold or destroyed. As the museum curator of your family possessions the time to start managing these item is now and taking inventory doesn’t have to be an arduous task.
The first step and biggest step you’ll need to make is simple. Be creative and pick up your digital (insert your favorite device here) and make a record of each possession. If your using a tablet then record your voice with the digital images explaining the family knowing of the prized possession. Later you can use the Family Knowledge Process to transfer the digital file to the Prized Possessions folder for your Family Group.
Pictured below is an unlikely family keepsake handed down by three generations of my family. It’s a piece of a Japanese bomb fragment from the bombing of Darwin in 1942. This was a memento collected by my grandfather. Thankfully he had the good sense to write on the shrapnel explaining what the item was!
Taking a photo and then filling in the Prized Possession Template is a sound way to help protect the story of how possessions have become treasured by family members.