Yesterday I started an oral history interview with a wonderful friend, a 97 year old ranch woman. I shared my first set of interview questions so she could have time to think about her responses. She said the questions are hard and I told her we’d use them as a basis to start the interview and could go anywhere she wanted from there.
As I drove home, I thought about my potential responses. Here is a sampling of the questions; how would you answer them?
- What is something that changed the way you lived (like electricity, running water, automobiles) ? Describe your life before and after.
- What are you proudest of and what do you most regret?
- How has your life been different than you imagined it would be when you were young?
- What wisdom that you’ve gained in your life would you like to pass on to your children, grandchildren, great grandchildren and great great grandchildren?
Sandy Snider Stahl 