Magical Mystery Tour

Today I taught week #2 of my 6 week 'Unlock Your Personal Stories' workshop at my local library, near my home nestled in the foothills of the Mt Lofty Ranges in Adelaide. I was tired this morning, having sat up until 1.30am to participate in a webinar with colleagues in the US and Canada, and I wasn't sparking on all cylinders as I stumbled into the shower before breakfast, thinking about the 10am class. As I washed my hair, I thought about the group of people who'd met last week for the first week of the 6 week journey back into their early lives and I recalled the enthusiasm on their faces as I opened their eyes and their minds to the storehouse of treasured memories lying within themselves.

My passion for helping everyday people discover and reveal the dormant stories of their own and other family members drives me enthusiastically every day. I am a woman on a mission! I never tire of facing a new class of people eager to learn how to put together an invaluable legacy for future family members. "Wouldn't you like to be remembered as more than a photo of an elderly grey haired and bespectacled relative in an old photo on the mantlepiece?" I ask. Those brave souls who accept my challenge discover many latent talents within themselves - how to write their stories creatively in a style that others want to read, that very few want to start a story, like David Copperfield's "I was born.....", that it's the little personal anecdotes that enhance and add life to their story, and much, much more.

Today's class focussed on using IT to help in all aspects of gathering, organising and preserving stories. Our library has a brand new IT suite, enabling me to sit at the front computer , tap in to the keyboard my instructions for opening a file and a folder etc, which then appeared on the large screen for the students to follow. Class members also learned how to scan and digitise a photo and to upload it into a flash drive to take home and save the photo in their home computer.

The last exercise was opening their own Shoe Box account in Legacy Stories. Most were astounded to learn that their precious stories, digitised photos and documents, audio and video clips can be safely stored and preserved for the future online. One lady wants to now scan some ancient family records dating back to the 1700's this way and can't wait to try to explain this to her mother, a spritely 103 year old lady!

This class and I have 4 more action packed hours together as we journey together on our Magical Mystery Tour from our respective pasts, gathering stories, tales, incidents, encounters with both famous and infamous people along the way and into the future. All of these precious snippits, tibits, bits and pieces, plus odds and sods will be carefully added to the sturdy framework of their life story along with priceless photos to enhance and embellish their legacy for future family generations. Then, through the rapid advances of technology, each student's stories will be preserved for the future in their shoe box, where other family and friends may view and comment on each story, adding yet another facet to each recollection.

Great grandchildren of the students will be able to look at the family photo and point to my students, proudly telling visitors "That's my great grandfather/mother who was .......... and did......in......." That's a vast improvement on just being a dusty old forgotten photo, isn't it?

Have YOU started you Magical Mystery Tour yet? Let me know if I can help.

Apple Picking
Building My Passion
 

Comments 10

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Charles William Spratt (website) on Friday, 07 October 2011 12:46

WOW !!! Sounds like you have an exciteing job. If you want to call it a job. More like a passion. Enjoy.

WOW !!! Sounds like you have an exciteing job. If you want to call it a job. More like a passion. Enjoy.
Patricia White (website) on Friday, 07 October 2011 12:47

Annie, reading your article made me want to be a part of your class and enjoy the adventure of bringing the past to life under your direction!

Annie, reading your article made me want to be a part of your class and enjoy the adventure of bringing the past to life under your direction!
Tom Cormier (website) on Friday, 07 October 2011 14:54

I can only wish everyone could take your class Annie. There is so much to be gained and so much to be lost in a life. Showing people that they had a life worth living is really beautiful. Thanks

I can only wish everyone could take your class Annie. There is so much to be gained and so much to be lost in a life. Showing people that they had a life worth living is really beautiful. Thanks
sheena bienvenue (website) on Saturday, 08 October 2011 09:53

i was in annie' class. she has a natural talent for drawing out the important details in a person's history. listening to other people share this tidbits in the class makes it all the more enjoyalble. . for the rest of the weekend, i have been looking at old pictures that i want to write about. i have a thousand. hope i live that long. sheena

i was in annie' class. she has a natural talent for drawing out the important details in a person's history. listening to other people share this tidbits in the class makes it all the more enjoyalble. . for the rest of the weekend, i have been looking at old pictures that i want to write about. i have a thousand. hope i live that long. sheena
Dennis Stack (website) on Saturday, 08 October 2011 14:50

Hi Sheena, and welcome to LegacyStories. I am anxious to read your stories if you are willing to allow we 'yanks' the opportunity. One of the reasons we began this site was to provide a venue where people can share glimpses of their lives in different countries and cultures.

Hi Sheena, and welcome to LegacyStories. I am anxious to read your stories if you are willing to allow we 'yanks' the opportunity. One of the reasons we began this site was to provide a venue where people can share glimpses of their lives in different countries and cultures.
Annie Payne (website) on Saturday, 08 October 2011 11:21

Thanks for your feedback about yesterday's class at Campbelltown Library and I'm thrilled to hear that you have been inspired to start examining your family photos in a new light and searching for the stories behind each photo. Thankfully listening, one of the skills I learned early in my nursing career, is something I am comfortable with as it's one of the most important factors of being a personal historian.

Thanks for your feedback about yesterday's class at Campbelltown Library and I'm thrilled to hear that you have been inspired to start examining your family photos in a new light and searching for the stories behind each photo. Thankfully listening, one of the skills I learned early in my nursing career, is something I am comfortable with as it's one of the most important factors of being a personal historian.
Dennis Stack on Saturday, 08 October 2011 14:56

Annie, you are a real gem! I am so anxious to see,,,,and read,,,and hopefully 'hear' the stories about the lives of people in your country. Thank you for being such an important part of our nascent enterprise. God speed!

Annie, you are a real gem! I am so anxious to see,,,,and read,,,and hopefully 'hear' the stories about the lives of people in your country. Thank you for being such an important part of our nascent enterprise. God speed!
Annie Payne (website) on Saturday, 08 October 2011 23:56

Thanks, Dennis. I have been working in this specialised area since 1988 and have over the past 23 years, interviewed and transcribed the life stories of thousands of people. I have yet to listen to a dull or boring person yet! I love the work I do, be it teaching classes, interviewing, transcription of the interview, editing etc. It is a pleasure to be invited into someone's personal life and to help them to preserve it for the future!

Thanks, Dennis. I have been working in this specialised area since 1988 and have over the past 23 years, interviewed and transcribed the life stories of thousands of people. I have yet to listen to a dull or boring person yet! I love the work I do, be it teaching classes, interviewing, transcription of the interview, editing etc. It is a pleasure to be invited into someone's personal life and to help them to preserve it for the future!
Susan Darbro (website) on Monday, 10 October 2011 18:45

Annie, I think you should offer US a class! Great story.

Annie, I think you should offer US a class! Great story.
Diane Mason Gray (website) on Wednesday, 12 October 2011 20:26

Enjoyed your story, Annie, and wish you'd share your class materials with me so I might do something like that here (after my day job) and not have to create a curriculum from the ground up! If you wouldn't mind, you have my regular email address. I'd LOVE to do what you do!!

Enjoyed your story, Annie, and wish you'd share your class materials with me so I might do something like that here (after my day job) and not have to create a curriculum from the ground up! If you wouldn't mind, you have my regular email address. I'd LOVE to do what you do!!