Life Story Links: October 1, 2024

“Memory arrives in fragments. Truth erupts; it finds us.”
—Beth Kephart

Vintage postcard depicting an illustration of the lake in Prospect Park, Brooklyn, postmarked 1909, Vicksburg, Mississippi; from the personal ephemera collection of Dawn Roode.

Personal history miscellany

WORDS FROM BEYOND
Sarah Leavitt says that years after her partner died, a final voice memo her partner left—called “for my beautiful companion”—helped her heal. “I lost my breath: That was the day before Donimo died. How was this happening?”

WHAT WOULD YOU DECIDE?
I recently published a brief 3-part series about choices I wish my clients hadn’t made, in hopes that sharing a few of these differences of opinion might be instructive for those waffling over similar decisions. In part three, a look at the importance (or not?) of photo captions.

OUT WITH THE OLD, IN WITH THE NEW
A new study explores “how mental clutter—the stuff we can't seem to forget—affects our memory as we get older.” Two Boston University professors break down the science and explain how age impacts working memory.

IMMIGRANT LANGUAGE INHERITANCE
“Why is it...that some families manage to successfully pass their heritage language onto the next generation while other families struggle to do so?”

ONE-WORD TITLE: ‘DIARY’
“As the Nazis performed executions deep in the Lithuanian woods, one local man took detailed, dispassionate notes. He was unwittingly creating one of the most unusual documents in history.”

COLLECTIVE MEMORY
“Zoomed out, the Internet Archive is one of the most important historical-preservation organizations in the world. The Wayback Machine has assumed a default position as a safety valve against digital oblivion.” Why this digital library is in danger.

World food heritage

STORIES FROM INDIAN KITCHENS
In these cookbooks, Indian food “becomes a portal to memories, emotions, and nostalgia. These authors delve deep into their culinary roots, preserving not just recipes, but the stories and heritage that surround them.”

EGYPT’S FOOD LEGACY
In this episode of The Storied Recipe, Dr. Mennat-Allah Al Dorry discusses the role of food in daily life for ancient Egyptians, why food traditions are disappearing for today’s Egyptians, and her own deep commitment to unearthing Egypt’s ancient food heritage and preserving today’s: