An African proverb says “When an Elder dies, a library burns to the ground.” Our good friend recently lost her mom and dad to illnesses. I interviewed her on Wednesday—gleaning from the wisdom and hope she inherited and bravely kept.
Last week, our church prayed for Mom and me to teach the Creative Media Course well. The students responded beautifully! And they helped me record my friends stories… I’ll tell them here at church in time I trust.
But now I’d like to invite each one of our ohanas here to capture what we may—of the wisdom, faith, holiness and humility of our ohanas’ time travelers. The ones decades ahead of us in the marathon of life.
To prepare for filming, watch this clip we made to help capture the best mobile recordings.
Recording well is the first step. Editing and transcribing especially is getting easier with apps and AI. But it all still takes dedication. May many volumes of your ohana’s library never burn!
Here are some questions you can use to start interviewing kupuna / elders:
Where and how did you grow up?
What is your earliest family memory?
What was your source of emotional and physical warmth as a child?
Who and what shaped you early on to become who you are?
How are things better and worse for kids growing up now?
What would you tell your younger self if you could?
What taught you the lessons that mattered most in your life?
Do you feel you’ve learned real aloha? Who taught you—and how?
The Bible says “Young men see visions and old men dream dreams”.
Do you dream? What of?
Is eternity becoming more real as you age? How so?
What’s the most supernatural experience you’ve had?
In the quiet of night, what stirs or comforts you?
What have you endured and overcome? How did you?
Are there hurts or wrongs you’ve tried to let go of? Were you able?
With all the changes in life, what gives you peace?
Of all you’ve seen, what do you most enjoy telling people about?
What have you not told us that you wouldn’t want us to miss?
What should we make right before we run out of time?
Is there anything else I haven’t asked about that you’d like to say?
