Among the 2.27 million people globally who have died of Covid-19 in the last year, countless families have lost a beloved elderly relative. Even as vaccines are being rolled out, the lives of precious grandparents and parents are still at risk – or being lost to the virus, causing widespread and unexpected sorrow for families across the world.
When we lose older people, we are bereft of not only their company but also a part of our own personal histories. Narratives that shape younger generations recede into the background. Which is one reason why it is so important right now to record our oral histories while we still have time.
Life for so many people seems to have slowed during the lockdown. And as restrictions endure in so many countries, storytelling can be a way to fill our days with meaning. It is good use of time to examine important questions: how did we get here, what shaped our families, our culture, our personalities? Oral histories of families will rarely be captured by the grand sweep of history text books. But in terms of placing ourselves in a context, family stories will arguably always have more meaning to us than any formal records.
There is a modern trend to get DNA tests done to find out about our ancestry. But why start so far? What about the stories that surround us and we don’t know anything about? When will we have this much time and opportunity to explore those?
Even as adults, we often need to create our own worlds. From time to time we all need solace, and not just when we are bereaved. Hearing family anecdotes passed down from generations addresses that need in us all. It is wise to capture the stories while we have our loved ones, rather than mourn them when it is too late. There is no time like the present to ask our elders about their lives and listen to their experiences, their memories of the people who shaped them and made them who they are.
In the last year, many children have had limited access to grandparents, uncles, aunts – all of whom help establish their place in the world. These bonds would normally be built by social events and community interactions, which have been drastically cut.
Recounting stories is a powerful way to recreate these essential bonds between younger generations and elders, bonds that may have been fractured by the distance caused by Covid-19. Which child doesn’t love to hear stories? And which grandparent doesn’t love to see the wonder on the faces of the young? It just needs a prompt for them to open up to each other. Storytelling sessions are one way to make children understand that ‘old’ people too have lived rich lives. That they have experienced adventures and feelings we may not necessarily associate with them. Oral histories carry immense value. And talking about the past, being together and handing down family lore establishes a healthy understanding of age and perspective.
Storytelling allows us to see our elders in a different light, as people who had dreams, aspirations and challenges, unimaginable in today's contex
This is good for children and it helps the elderly feel wanted and loved. For many people, memories of their younger years are often their strongest and they become most animated when telling them. Engaging our elders in conversation is a way to help them through feeling low during lockdown. And often, such conversations require sensitivity and courage, especially if family histories open old wounds. Stories of war, partition, displacement, suffering and loss are not easy to delve into. But broaching these topics, showing interest, engagement, can bring great joy, mutual respect and a sense of well-being to families.
Such projects – creating records of our elders, filming them being nostalgic about their youth – are a great boon. Often this documentation is a balm when families lose their elders. Often this documentation is a balm when families lose their elders. And the records we keep now can benefit future generations in the family.
The child who might have been unborn – or too young when he lost his grandparent – might grow into a teenager who wants to know what his nana was like in her twenties. One could start by drawing family trees and sorting out those sepia-tinted family photographs that one always intended to digitise or by salvaging old VHS tapes and projector reels.
Young children can begin by asking their parents or grandparents to describe what they were like at their age and what they did for fun. Older and adult children can probe further, about challenges the elders faced when they were making their way in the world, or what was happening in the world at the time, what were the most exciting and most difficult things they faced, and so on.
Children and grandchildren need to be nourished by understanding their roots. To leave them with a vacuum about their histories is to render them with an incomplete upbringing. Storytelling within families allows us to see our elders in a different light, as people who had dreams, aspirations and challenges that might be unimaginable in today's context. Their stories might even explain some of their thinking and behaviour. With any luck, it might lend us insight into how we create our own future histories by understanding our past.
Shelina Janmohamed is an author and a culture columnist for The National
Our legal consultants
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Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
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A timeline of the Historical Dictionary of the Arabic Language
- 2018: Formal work begins
- November 2021: First 17 volumes launched
- November 2022: Additional 19 volumes released
- October 2023: Another 31 volumes released
- November 2024: All 127 volumes completed
Other workplace saving schemes
- The UAE government announced a retirement savings plan for private and free zone sector employees in 2023.
- Dubai’s savings retirement scheme for foreign employees working in the emirate’s government and public sector came into effect in 2022.
- National Bonds unveiled a Golden Pension Scheme in 2022 to help private-sector foreign employees with their financial planning.
- In April 2021, Hayah Insurance unveiled a workplace savings plan to help UAE employees save for their retirement.
- Lunate, an Abu Dhabi-based investment manager, has launched a fund that will allow UAE private companies to offer employees investment returns on end-of-service benefits.
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Favourite book: The Leader Who Had No Title by Robin Sharma
Pet Peeve: Racism
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What puts her off: Dishonesty in all its forms
Happiest period in her life: The beginning of her 30s
Favourite movie: "I have two. The Pursuit of Happiness and Homeless to Harvard"
Role model: Everyone. A child can be my role model
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Jetour T1 specs
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Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
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UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
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UAE SQUAD
Omar Abdulrahman (Al Hilal), Ali Khaseif, Ali Mabkhout, Salem Rashed, Khalifa Al Hammadi, Khalfan Mubarak, Zayed Al Ameri, Mohammed Al Attas (Al Jazira), Khalid Essa, Ahmed Barman, Ryan Yaslam, Bandar Al Ahbabi (Al Ain), Habib Fardan, Tariq Ahmed, Mohammed Al Akbari (Al Nasr), Ali Saleh, Ali Salmin (Al Wasl), Adel Al Hosani, Ali Hassan Saleh, Majed Suroor (Sharjah), Ahmed Khalil, Walid Abbas, Majed Hassan, Ismail Al Hammadi (Shabab Al Ahli), Hassan Al Muharrami, Fahad Al Dhahani (Bani Yas), Mohammed Al Shaker (Ajman)
What can you do?
Document everything immediately; including dates, times, locations and witnesses
Seek professional advice from a legal expert
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The bio:
Favourite holiday destination: I really enjoyed Sri Lanka and Vietnam but my dream destination is the Maldives.
Favourite food: My mum’s Chinese cooking.
Favourite film: Robocop, followed by The Terminator.
Hobbies: Off-roading, scuba diving, playing squash and going to the gym.
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A State of Passion
Directors: Carol Mansour and Muna Khalidi
Stars: Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah
Rating: 4/5
Abu Dhabi race card
5pm: Maiden (PA) | Dh80,000 | 1,600m
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6pm: Liwa Oasis (PA) Group 2 | Dh300,000 | 1,400m
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T20 World Cup Qualifier, Muscat
UAE FIXTURES
Friday February 18: v Ireland
Saturday February 19: v Germany
Monday February 21: v Philippines
Tuesday February 22: semi-finals
Thursday February 24: final
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Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
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Crops that could be introduced to the UAE
1: Quinoa
2. Bathua
3. Amaranth
4. Pearl and finger millet
5. Sorghum
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Marathon results
Men:
1. Titus Ekiru(KEN) 2:06:13
2. Alphonce Simbu(TAN) 2:07:50
3. Reuben Kipyego(KEN) 2:08:25
4. Abel Kirui(KEN) 2:08:46
5. Felix Kemutai(KEN) 2:10:48
Women:
1. Judith Korir(KEN) 2:22:30
2. Eunice Chumba(BHR) 2:26:01
3. Immaculate Chemutai(UGA) 2:28:30
4. Abebech Bekele(ETH) 2:29:43
5. Aleksandra Morozova(RUS) 2:33:01
Ibrahim's play list
Completed an electrical diploma at the Adnoc Technical Institute
Works as a public relations officer with Adnoc
Apart from the piano, he plays the accordion, oud and guitar
His favourite composer is Johann Sebastian Bach
Also enjoys listening to Mozart
Likes all genres of music including Arabic music and jazz
Enjoys rock groups Scorpions and Metallica
Other musicians he likes are Syrian-American pianist Malek Jandali and Lebanese oud player Rabih Abou Khalil
Zayed Sustainability Prize
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Mamo Year it started: 2019 Founders: Imad Gharazeddine, Asim Janjua Based: Dubai, UAE Number of employees: 28 Sector: Financial services Investment: $9.5m Funding stage: Pre-Series A Investors: Global Ventures, GFC, 4DX Ventures, AlRajhi Partners, Olive Tree Capital, and prominent Silicon Valley investors. 
