Wendy already hit on some of my feelings. It is important to have pictures with the older person when they go to a home. And the pictures should be labeled. If someone has a memory they want to share, write it down. In the end all we are is our memories we leave behind.

Yesterday I was at a stranger's home, long story, and the three year old was pulling out toys from the ancient tool box. She pulled out her great grand mother's photo album. I jumped up and took it from her and brought it to grandma. I know a lot of grandma's family. She showed me my friend., her brother who died over 3 years ago, she showed me her and her spouse and smiled a happy memory smile. I tried to encourage her kids to write stuff down and get the photos redone as they are damaged. This is their history and it is a gift.

I want someone to be my rememberer if my mind fails. I want to hear the nice stories from my life, not the tradgic ones. I want to hear about the adventurous little girl in the hayloft, on the tree swing, in the trees. I want to hear about wild horse rides. I need to tell my children these stories now, I have been so quiet about my life that I have told no stories. The good also touch the bad and I have kept quiet. You remind me that the tradition of oral history is urgent and all we have in some cases to keep our culture alive.

Very interesting post. Timely for me. If it's okay to stray a little away from the main topic, yesterday we spoke, this family of relatives to my dead friend, of things like dooryards and elastics and hunin(hunting). We spoke of 84 year old sis memory of mom picking a "switch" which meant a piece of shruberly with no leaves, and hitting sis ankles and legs all the way home with it. I asked her if it was mean and she said no, her mom was very strict. And they explained what a switch was, like a stick, but with plyability. And I watched the today babies being treated as angels and the gifts that they are.