Week Eighteen: Your Neighborhood

Most people have fond memories of the neighborhood in which they grew up: the hangouts, the haunted houses, the secret hideouts. Rural or urban, every location has something unique and attractive to children. In this busy day and age, most children's lives are very over-scheduled and with the dangers of sexual predators, gangs, and drug dealers, as well as the electronic attractions of computer/video games, cell phones, and instant messaging/MySpace/FaceBook, kids don't roam free as they once did. Leave a record of some great memories for your descendants!

*Describe the neighborhood of your childhood. Was it rural or urban? If urban, what stores, parks, and businesses do you remember? If rural, describe the woods or plains, streams or lakes/ponds that you explored. Or perhaps you lived in a small town or the suburbs, which were a combination of the great outdoors and the community services.

*What was your favorite place to go hang out with your friends? Why? What were some of the things you did there?

*Who were your friends and where did they live? Describe them...how old they were, how you ended up becoming friends, what was special about them?

*Are you still in touch with your childhood friends? Why or why not? Where do they live now?

*What was your favorite place to go to be by yourself? Why? What were some of the things you did there?

*Was there a haunted house or cemetery or some other scary place in your neighborhood? Did you ever go exploring there? What happened?

*Was there a place from which your parents told you to stay away? What was it and why were you supposed to stay away from it? Did you ever visit it anyway? What happened?

*Where did you learn to swim? What was your favorite "swimming hole?"

*Where did you ride your bicycle?

*Where did you go to the movies? or shoot pool? or play video games (before they were available for home use)?

*Where did you go bowling? or rollerskating? or skateboarding? or sledding? or ice skating?

*What kinds of outdoor games did you play with your friends? Hopscotch? Marbles? Cowboys and Indians? Capture the flag? Tag? Jump rope?

*What kinds of mischief did you and your friends get into? Were you ever caught? If so, what were the consequences?

*Was there a house in the neighborhood that everyone gravitated to? You know, the one whose mom didn't care if you hung out there all day, as long as you cleaned up after yourselves? Was it your house, or someone else's? Describe what you used to do there.

*Was there a convenience store, malt shop, Mom and Pop store, candy store, or some other place that all the kids loved to go to get their treats? What kinds of treats were your favorite? Was there an ice cream truck that you used to frequent?

*Did you ever have a lemonade stand? Write about your successes or failures with that.

*If you lived in the country, where did you like to go fishing, hunting, hiking, or ORVing? Tell your stories.

*Did you ever run into wild animals (bears, snakes, etc.) or fierce farm animals (bulls, roosters, etc.) while playing out in the country? Tell about your adventures!

*Did you ever run away from home? Why? Where did you go and how long were you there?

*Did you have a tree house or clubhouse? Was it secret, or did everyone hang out there? Who built it?

Instead of writing down your responses, you could make an audio recording and transcribe it later. I can think of so many stories about running around as a kid, that writing them down would take a very long time! A recording would be simpler and faster. Find some photos of you and your friends hanging out, or of the places you used to frequent to illustrate your written journal.

Next week,we'll expand a bit and on focus on "Your Community."

(P.S. Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there!)

Week Nine: Letters to Your Siblings' Descendants

The prompt for Week Nine is an expansion of some of the prompts from Week Three: Your Immediate Family. Week Nine focuses on your siblings, but we're going to take a slightly different approach from the question-and-answer format. For each of your siblings, write a letter to their future descendants of 50 years from now. Imagine that you are the only one left to describe the lives of your siblings to their descendants (and for some of you, this may be so). Incorporate the important events, locations, and people of your siblings' lives, but most importantly, describe the things that make them "real," which are difficult for the family historian to discover: their personalities, their flaws and strengths, their passions and dislikes, their relationship with you.

Obviously, if you have many siblings, this assignment will take a while. You may choose to write one letter a day, or to write one now and each of the others around the time of your siblings' birthdays, as a way to honor them. Don't forget half- and step-siblings.

If you are an only child, you can adapt this for favorite cousins or even close friends.

You can include photos of your siblings at different ages of their lives, and photos that include both of you. Make copies of these letters and share them with your siblings (cousins, friends) and/or their descendants. They would make nice gifts at birthdays, anniversaries, or reunions.

Week Ten will focus on your mother and her life.

Week Four: Your Elementary School Life

Preschool, Head-start, Kindergarten, grammar school, elementary school, middle school, junior high...whatever you call the education you had before high school, this is the topic at hand.

*What were the names of the schools you attended, and where were they located?

*What grade(s) did you attend at each school? During which years (you may wish to filter this information if you place it online)?

*What were the names of your teachers? Who were your favorites and why? Who were your least favorites and why?

*Do you remember any other staff members (custodians, cooks, bus drivers, administrators, secretaries, etc.)?

*What were your favorite and worst subjects at school, and why?

*What kind of grades did you make?

*Did you walk, ride (bike or auto), or take a bus to school? What memories do you have of going to and from school?

*What field trips do you remember?

*Tell about some guests (musicians, performers, authors, etc.) that visited your school.

*What sports, clubs, musical groups, and/or activities were you involved in?

*What awards did you earn?

*Were you ever punished (demerits, detention, principal's office, ruler, etc.)? Why?

*Who were some of your best school friends? Share some special memories about them.

*Were you ever bullied, or did you ever bully anyone? How was that resolved, or was it ever?

*Tell about any graduation ceremonies you participated in during this time. Did you have a graduation party and/or receive gifts?

School and class photos would make a nice addition to your journal. Don't forget to write captions...just because YOU know who everyone is doesn't mean your descendants will!

Next week, we will naturally talk about high school life. If you are following these journal prompts, by blog, computer, or by hand, please drop me a line at kidmiff@gmail.com.