One of the fun things about writing family history is you can experiment with different writing formats. You can tell a family story by writing a poem or a song, describing a photo, sharing a recipe and the story behind it, creating a diary-style note, or writing a letter.
Today, we’ll look at a writing prompt for a seasonal letter you can write. This letter is partly an encouragement to future generations of your family, and it’s partly a way to share your own memories.
Picture a young person in a future generation of your family—perhaps a great-grandchild that isn’t born yet. They’re headed back to school, whether elementary, high school, college, or trade school. You can write a letter of encouragement today that they can read in a future era. What a gift for them and a blessing for you to share.
Not only can you write encouraging words for them. You can also share a favorite back-to-school memory from your life. It can be one specific story or a few highlights you remember. It doesn’t matter what kind of memory you share. Just write from your heart. It will be treasured one day.
You can leave this letter for future generations to read. You can send a copy to a younger person in your family going back to school now. You can blog your letter to inspire others. You might even include your letter in a family history or memoir book, if that’s the kind of project you’re working on.
I wish I had received letters like this from my ancestors. I would have treasured every word. I promise your letter will bless future generations.
Additionally, this letter is great writing practice for you. Anytime you exercise your writing muscle, it’s a good thing. And it will help stir memories you can write even more about, should you choose to do so.
As you start to draft your letter, enjoy the process. Create an inspiring space to write in. Have your favorite coffee or tea on hand. Perhaps sit outside in nature. Look at old school photos if you have those on hand, if they will inspire you.
in the future. Photo by Sixteen Miles Out at Unsplash
Most of all, focus on that young person in your family who is heading back to school. What encouragement can you give them? What excites you about their upcoming school days? What do you hope they’ll enjoy and remember most from their school experience?
Then share a story or highlights from your school experience to encourage them. They will love hearing those stories and getting to know more about your school time. They’ll get a boost of inspiration to realize they’re in good company as they navigate the days ahead.
Make this an enjoyable, no-pressure writing experience. Too often, when writing for a future generation, we feel like we have to get the words just right. In reality, those future family members just want to hear your heart and know more about how you lived out the same things they’re going through right now.
So, no pressure. Just share your heart. You can’t get it wrong. You don’t have to show it to anyone if you decide not to share it. It’s still a great writing experience for you. If you come up with different ways to say things later, you can edit, add, change.
Just enjoy the moment of inspiration and writing to encourage future generations of your family. They will be so grateful you took the time to write.
Janet Eriksson 