TIPS AND RESOURCES

The List: Resources & Links

This directory of resources, books and links is maintained for those interested in more ideas and information on LifeCatching topics.

Books

Scrapbooks
Rithamel, Susan Pickering.  Encyclopedia of Scrapbooking Tools and Techniques. (Sterling Publishing Co., New York, 2005)

Genealogy
Szucs, Loretto Dennis & Sandra Hargreaves Luebking, editors. The Source: A Guidebook of American Genealogy.

Kurzweil, Arthur. From Generation to Generation – How to Trace Your Jewish Genealogy and Personal History. (Schoken Books, 1982)

Ethical Wills
Baines, Barry K. Ethical Wills: Putting Your Values on Paper. (Perseus Books, 2002)

Reimer, Jack & Nathaniel Stamfer. So That Your Values Live on: Ethical Wills and How to Prepare Them. (Jewish Lights Publishing, 2003)

Memorabilia
Williams, Don & Louisa Jaggar. Saving Stuff (Fireside, 2005)

Writing
Barrington, Judith. Writing the Memoir, From Truth to Art. (The Eighth Mountain Press, 2002)

Baxter, Charles (ed.). The Business of Memory (Graywolf Press)

Cameron, Julia. The Right to Write. (Jeremy P. Tarcher/Putnam, 1998)

Forbes, Lissa Ann. Write from the Inside. (The Elemental Press)

Franco, Carol & Kent Lineback. The Legacy Guide (Tarcher/Penguin, 2006)

Stanek, Lou Willett. Writing Your Life. (Quill, 1996)

Web Sites

Scrapbooks
Memory Makers [www.memorymakersmagazine.com]

Creating Keepsakes  [www.creatingkeepsakes.com]

Genealogy
www.Cyndislist.com  [Links you to the world of genealogy.]

www.familysearch.org

www.familytreemagazine.com

Memorabilia
www.whatsitworthtoyou.com

Ethical Wills
www.ethicalwill.com

           
Associations and other noteworthy organizations
www.Personalhistorians.org

www.storycorps.net

www.loc.gov/vets

www.hospicefoundation.org

Tips: How to let life-catching bring you joy

As you will learn in the subsequent chapters, all efforts to preserve personal histories are valuable and will be appreciated. Keep the following ideas in mind for the most pleasurable journey:            

1. Know that each of us is interesting…to someone.
   
   
2. Seek to be enlightened, about your family, about your values, about yourself.
   
   
3. Set achievable project goals. Then make a plan, and make a mess, as you sort through everything. Just be sure to stay on task and finish the project.
   
   
4. You can always return to a project to fill in details or research information as necessary. Don’t be side tracked by missing elements or details as you start out.
   
   
5. Do not fret about being creative. Concentrate on the collecting and organizing of the stuff memories are made of.
   
   
6. Understand that memories can be slippery. People are not immortal and procrastination could cause you to lose precious information.
    
7. Allow yourself to be sentimental. Compassionate. Reflective. A fact finder.  Be all the above or some combination.
   
   
8. Approach life-catching as a fun, entertaining and rewarding activity.
   
   
9. Enjoy the ultimate pleasure of sharing the life-catching experience, especially with the younger generation. It is a priceless gift.

LifeCatching Tools

The following tools are available to help you jumpstart your LifeCatching Project(s). They are in Adobe PDF format.

Click here if you don't have the free Acrobat Reader program from Adobe.

LifeCatching NOW! Quick Start Basics

LifeCatching Biographical Sketch