Create a COVID-19 Memory Book: Writing Prompts for You and Your Family
Wow. We are living through some crazy and unnerving times. None of us expected a worldwide pandemic would close down our schools, restaurants, stores, offices, and public life. But here we are. And there is no time like right now to start a COVID-19 memory book.
We crave stories about troubled times and tales of hardship and survival. After all, we can read a hundred scholarly history books about World War II to understand the facts. But it’s Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl that makes us truly understand the day-to-day events and hardships she and other Jewish people experienced.
It’s the details of everyday life during a crisis that fascinate us. So, have you begun to record how the COVID-19 pandemic affected your family in 2020? Have you written down the ways it has changed your life? Have your children or grandchildren shared their thoughts on what’s happening? It’s time to start your memory book!
Write your memory book
Find some blank or gently used notebooks for you and your family members. Ask them each to write down a paragraph or two every couple of days about their daily actions and feelings. Writing helps keep kids off screens and sharpens their communication skills. But more importantly, they’ll have these memories in 20 or 30 years to share with their families.
5 topics for your COVID-19 memory book
If you need some help getting started, try writing about one of these topics:
- How has daily life changed? Write down the ways your schedule and activities changed with COVID-19. What do you miss doing? What are you doing to keep busy? Have you taken advantage of the extra time you might have at home? If yes, what are you doing? What is your new daily schedule? What do you do on the weekends?
- What’s your mental state? Talk about your emotions when you first learned about COVID-19 and how they have changed throughout the pandemic. What worries you most? What makes you feel reassured? How do you deal with the stress you’re feeling? What continues to bring your joy and happiness?
- Who is helping you through this? Highlight your most important relationships during this time. Who in your family have you turned to? Name the friends who are getting you through this. Which leaders do you believe in and trust? Write down examples of friendship and small gestures that have meant a lot to you.
- How are you staying connected to people? In 20 or 30 years, our 2020 technology will seem very slow and old-fashioned. Give details about the technology you’re using to work from home, connect with school, stay in touch with family and friends, and entertain yourself.
- What are you learning about yourself and the world? Your schedule is cleared. You have time to reflect on your reaction to the pandemic, as well as how society is reacting. Write down your observations, surprises, and disappointments. What makes you proud of your community and country? How will this change society? Any predictions about the future?
Preserving This Moment in History
The stories we write now—yes, even the messy, uncertain ones—will matter to future generations. Whether you fill a journal, jot notes on your phone, or gather your family around the table to talk and share, documenting this time is a powerful act of reflection, resilience, and connection.
And if you ever want help turning these reflections into a lasting legacy, Circa Legacy is here. We help families preserve their stories, big and small, through custom interviews and beautifully written legacy books. Because history isn’t just what happens on the news—it’s what happens in our homes, around our kitchen tables, and in the quiet moments we choose to remember.
