FAMILY STORY TELLING

November is a time for remembering. All Saints’ Day, All Souls’ Day, and Remembrance Day give us the opportunity to remember and retell the stories of those who have come before us and made their mark on the world through their love for others. I was struck, sitting in the school hall by the children learning songs for our school Remembrance Service. There was such beauty in this room full of young people remembering their family and community members who travelled far from home and gave themselves to the pursuit of peace. Children are fascinated by the past and they grasp from a young age how it has impacted them. The stories of the soldiers live on in the hearts of the young.

Over the past six months, my daughter has become engrossed with our family tree. This is in part due to the fact she has an obsessive mother who spends hours trying to solve it. She is also blessed with the presence of great-grandmother who shares photos and stories of her ancestors with her. It is deep-rooted (pardon the pun!) in our family tree to pass on small traditions and knowledge of where we have come from and who belongs to us in history. My daughter has become so passionate, she has found lost, forgotten ancestors and has remembered them to us. She was thrilled to find that her 5x great-grandparents resided in Astbury and are buried in the Church yard. Now she knows them, she doesn’t want to lose who they are. They are part of us.

As we look backwards, we remember all those who have formed us and have shaped the world we live in. This gives us an opportunity to think forwards. We are the storytellers of the past and we are the authors of the stories of the future. What we do now is the first draft of the next family history. What stories will our children and grandchildren be sharing about us or excited to find out about us? What will their memories say about us? As we work to keep those who came before us alive in our hearts, we need to be present in each moment. We need speak and show acts of love, kindness and compassion so, in the future, our young ones will tell stories showing God was here. I will finish with the words of the song the children were singing in the school hall (I am sure you will have heard it before): 

 Let there be peace on earth,​ and let it begin with me;  ​let there be peace on earth,​ the peace that was meant to be.​​

With God our creator,​ family all are we. ​Let us walk with each other ​in perfect harmony. 

(Jill Jackson and Sy Miller)

Sophie Molyneux, Trainee Pastoral Worker