Over the past few years we have lived through several historic events, and I have had several discussions with fellow Family Historians about how we should record our memories and reactions for the future, so that generations yet to come can see how their ancestors lived through several years of crisis.
In 2020 the world experienced a historic global pandemic, with many of us moving in and out of lockdowns and various restrictions on our daily lives as the world struggled to limit the spread and impact of Covid-19. Like many I was stood down from my job, saw businesses close and contacts restricted, and in the small community where I live, unforgettably saw armed police restricting travel across the state border. I spent my 50th birthday in lockdown, isolated at home.
While many of my memories of the
pandemic restrictions, which flowed on into 2021, are stressful, there
were also many positives. So many people came together to keep each
other going. Online shopping boomed and the concept of 'click and
collect' became (and remains) common. In the genealogical community
meetings and conferences went online and access to many digitised
records were relaxed to make research from home easier. The idea of
working from home became much more common in many industries.
Hard on the heels of 2 years of Covid lockdowns, 2022 saw my home area suffer the worst floods in living memory. While my home itself was not impacted, many friends saw their homes flood, roads and highways were cut, access to services cut, shops closed and like many I came under an evacuation order.
We watched the Murray River flood parkland, the water creeping closer and closer, flooding homes and breeching levies like the one behind the library where I work - see the photo below. As the water rose the community came together to frantically sandbag homes and businesses, another wonderful show of community spirit in the face of a crisis.
These are memories that need to be recorded as part of our family history. We have all lived through a global pandemic and lived through or witnessed a number of historic events in recent years. Recording our memories of such major events should be a part of our family history records, for the generations that come after us.
So please, get writing your memories. Become your own storyteller of the historic times you have just lived through.
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