Life is a gift and it should be lived to the fullest, embraced, and, most importantly, remembered. How can we preserve family moments and the history of those who have gone before us, packing the way for the life we live today? Videos and photos can be an excellent way to preserve family history. 

Taking videos together as a family over the years is not a bad idea. It really does increase in value as time passes. When living in the present moment we don’t really stop to think that this moment we are living is fleeting. We think it is what is in front of us and, well, it is what it is. We rarely stop to think that this moment is not forever, that it is now and that in the future it will change. Each season and phase in a person’s life is a beautiful mystery that is a treasure to be captured.

What comes to mind is to think about if every saint that existed was captured on camera, what a plethora of love and joy would fill us to watch them! To see someone that God, the Church, has given us as an example of sanctity; someone who lived, and walked this earth and that I can see clearly in a video!

Capturing life within the family where there are many ups, downs, sufferings, and joys is just as important. Seizing memories, feelings, sensations and moments can help us see how far we have come as a family. How much we have loved. How much unity we have carried. How many experiences we have lived together. And ultimately how much love we had and continue to have for one another. 

Saving this history is especially important for the older generations. It is a fact that when we age we tend to look back into the past and reflect on our lives. Let us remind our elderly of the goodness that was and is still in their lives by simply showing them. Besides, they most likely have even forgotten a lot of hysterical moments!

Here are 4 ideas you as a parent can do with your kids to preserve your family history:

• Film every family gathering and place it in a shared album for the whole family. Watch the previous year of videos at Christmas time or before the start of a new year.
• Do a time capsule with your kids every 10 years, each person writing a note to themselves and their family members. When you open the time capsule read the letters from 10 years ago and re-write new ones.
  • It can be an untouchable traditional family day.
• Do a yearly family summer camp with every relative where each family stays in separate cabins. Play camp games, create choreographed music videos, and film them each year.
• Yearly family trips where the whole family is involved. Write different locations on a paper and place it in a hat. Whatever location is picked is where you go that year! 

Curious to learn more? Check out episode 21 of the Fairest Love Shrine podcast!