Questions about the world your parents lived through

8 questions

Your parents lived through a stretch of history you only know secondhand. These questions ask them to walk you through it — the moments they remember exactly where they were, the changes they've watched happen up close, the things that surprised them. It's the closest you'll get to a primary source.

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The world they lived through

01
What's the biggest change you've seen in the world over your lifetime?
Ask whether they think it's been a change for the better.
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02
Where were you when you heard about a major historical event — 9/11, the moon landing, a president being shot?
Ask what the world felt like in the days after — how people around them reacted.
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03
How did computers and the internet change your life — and what did you think of them at first?
Ask what took the longest to get used to.
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04
What do you think the next generation is getting right that yours got wrong?
Ask what they'd want them to hold onto from the past.
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05
Did you ever travel internationally? What surprised you most?
Ask about the moment that made them feel most like a foreigner — in a good way.
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06
What world event most changed you personally — not just historically, but the person you became after?
Ask what they were like before it, and what they were like after.
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07
What's a moment in history you remember exactly where you were when you heard the news?
Ask what they did in the hours that followed — who they called, what they thought.
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08
What's the biggest change you've seen in your lifetime that no one talks about?
Ask whether they think it was for the better.
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How to actually ask these

·Pick three or four. Trying to ask all of them in one sitting will exhaust you both. The best conversations come from one question that opens up into twenty minutes of unrelated stories.
·Don't correct or argue. If their memory of an event doesn't match yours, that's a separate conversation. Right now you're collecting their version.
·Write down what they say while it's fresh — or record it. Phones are good for this. You don't need anything fancier.
·If asking face-to-face feels like too much pressure — for either of you — consider letting our service text them one question every few days. Many people open up more easily over text than across a kitchen table.