S10 E227 - Stories Matter More Than You Think

In this meaningful episode, host Wendy Jones welcomes Meme Mulugeta, founder of The Legacy Project and The 1 & Only Publishing, to discuss the importance of preserving family stories and creating a lasting legacy for future generations.

Meme shares how professionally documenting life stories through documentary-style videos and keepsake books helps families preserve memories, foster healing, and strengthen connections across generations.

The Power of Legacy:

• Capture personal stories, life lessons, and family history
• Preserve voices, personalities, and cherished memories
• Create lasting gifts for children and grandchildren

Healing Through Storytelling:

• Sharing life experiences can bring forgiveness and closure
• Honest conversations help families better understand one another
• Reflecting on life's journey reminds people of their resilience and accomplishments

Lessons for Future Generations:

• Open discussions about challenges—including financial struggles, addiction, and relationships—can help break generational cycles
• Personal testimonies provide wisdom and encouragement for loved ones facing similar obstacles

Start Today:

Meme encourages families not to wait. Whether using a professional service or simply recording conversations on a smartphone, preserving stories today creates priceless memories for tomorrow.

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Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

This is Next Steps for Seniors with your host, Wendy Jones. Each week, Wendy brings resources and information to help guide you through those next steps with elderly parents and loved ones. If you have questions or topic suggestions, you can call us at 248-651-5010.

SPEAKER_01 0:19

Hello and welcome to Next Steps for Seniors Conversations on Aging. I am your host, Wendy Jones, and so incredibly blessed to be with you today. I have a guest with me in studio, and we are today going to talk about the Legacy Project. So let me just say this: as we go through life, things happen, we age, we lose our family members because guess what? It happens to everybody. However, telling stories and memories is everything, and that's why we have Mimi with us today. Mimi, how are you? Thank you for being with us.

SPEAKER_03 0:56

Hi, Wendy. I'm so excited to be here. And our topic is the Legacy Project.

SPEAKER_01 1:01

That's right. Mimi has a personal story of why she started this legacy project. But, you know, we have all sat around and told stories about people that we've loved at their funeral, right? We've all told stories before and after, but at the end of the day, we've got to hang on to those. There's a legacy, right, all in that. And because of your personal story, Mimi, and what you've been through, you started this organization to be able to help people grab onto the legacy, right? That's right. Tell us a little bit about how you came up with this idea of sharing. Sharing is caring, right?

SPEAKER_02 1:38

Absolutely. I initially started this journey through my publishing company, the One and Only Publishing, where we were helping people who wanted to leave a legacy to their families and to their to the world as far as sharing their story. So one client that I was helping, she was an older individual and she was not tech savvy at all.

SPEAKER_01 2:00

So neither am I, just for the record. We haven't figured that out yet.

SPEAKER_02 2:05

Anyway, go ahead. We decided because we were ghostwriting her book to just give her a call once a week and ask her prompted questions and record her story over the phone. And we went through that process, and when we were done with the recordings, we were getting ready to complete her book and she passed away. She shared with us during the process of writing the book, recording her sessions, that she wanted to leave this book to her daughter, um, who was uh 10 years estranged from her. So she hadn't spoken to her daughter for 10 whole years. So we still went ahead and finished the book and we went on a manhunt to find her daughter. And when we did that, we gave the book to her daughter, and her daughter was in absolute tears. She was absolutely grateful. She said she finally understood why her mother was the way she was. And so she came back to us and said, Is there any way I can get the voice recordings? And we of course obliged and provided her with that. And she followed up by saying, Man, I just really wish I could have seen her face when she said this part or that part. And it poured a seed in me that built this curiosity that there's maybe something there, but I didn't run with it until my friend reached out to me. She lives in South Carolina, I live in Maryland, and her grandmother also lives in Maryland. And so she asked me if I could meet with her grandmother because she felt that she wanted to capture her story. And I said to myself, Oh, you know what would be really cute if I did it on video instead of voice recording. So I went ahead and did some sessions with her on video, and for fun, just to be sweet to my friend, I had someone take those videos and edit it for me. And her grandmother ended up passing before I could give her that video. However, she used that video to play during the wake of her grandmother's funeral, and the room was completely silent.

SPEAKER_01 4:05

Oh, I love this.

SPEAKER_02 4:06

Love this. Tears were flowing, Wendy. Tears were flowing, people were laughing because she had so many funny moments during the interview. And I just said, How amazing is this? We need to run with this, and we have been running with it ever since. I see so much change, healing, love, excitement, closure through this process, and it's just been so rewarding.

SPEAKER_01 4:32

There is something very special about the next generation pouring into our younger generation, isn't it? And there's so much wisdom and knowledge in our seniors, and we need to just grab a hold of it. If I could tell you once, I could tell you a thousand times how many times people have said, I wish I knew this about my mom. I wish I knew this about my dad. And they just never asked. That's right. And then you're like, How am I gonna, you know, and you're calling aunts and uncles and brothers and sisters, and someone, someone's gotta know this answer, right? That's why not hear it from the mouths of them. I love this idea.

SPEAKER_02 5:16

Yep, I agree. And and you know, we usually just think about the person that's receiving this story, but also the person that's giving this story, it's also healing for them because sometimes when you don't look back in your life, you don't see how much even God has held your hand through the process of living. And having to recount those steps makes you realize, man, I lived a full life. I lived a life worth living, and I actually do have something to share. And I just see sometimes when I'm interviewing people, I see when they share their story, their eyes light up and they're like, Man, I forgot about that that I went through that. I forgot that I overcame that. And it's such a blessing to give to your loved one as well.

SPEAKER_01 5:58

And don't you think sometimes families just don't know the questions to ask? Right? Absolutely. And having an intentional moment where you're gonna be interviewed and you know this is coming, it makes you think about all the things you really do want to say. You know, even right now, I just want to challenge our listeners, anyone listening to this program, what have been the most defining moments in your life? What are the biggest purposeful moments that you want someone to know? What are you waiting for?

SPEAKER_02 6:30

To be honest with you, you know, we do this so that it is provided in a professional manner, but I encourage everyone, you have a phone in front of you, you have a recording device right there. Pick up your phone and just record it, you know? Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 6:43

Yeah, we've been given tools. But yes, I agree with you. I like the idea of what you're doing, but I also do think we can be doing it every day. And I just don't think we take the time. Everyone's running in a thousand directions. But what would you say your average customer age is? Are they usually the elderly person or anywhere between 45 years old and up?

unknown 7:04

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 7:05

So that's usually our age. But we we actually are doing one for someone that's 35 years old. He wants to record the transitions of his life so he can look back at when he's 80 and see where he would started.

SPEAKER_03 7:17

So it's actually very sweet.

SPEAKER_01 7:20

What a great idea. So these are the things when you are diagnosed with something, you know, and you're in your 70s, 80s, and you know you have a disease state. What a great opportunity to just be intentional, even if you just pick a day and you do this every week. We're gonna share Mimi's information too at some point so that you can utilize her services as well. But this is something I think we all need to really evaluate because we are who we are because of our experiences. Something in our lives has happened that defines us, and maybe like that daughter, the story you told at the beginning, she never realized it until she got that.

SPEAKER_02 8:01

Yeah, yeah. And the best part about it is she was able to finally forgive. Can you imagine living a full 10 years and even after your mother passes away to still harbor unforgiveness? She was able to forgive, and that's a big piece that I feel is so important for especially those families that may not be have the best dynamic, you know.

SPEAKER_01 8:24

I agree. And you know what's interesting, just so everyone knows too, Alzheimer's is on the rise, obviously. And one of the things I want to encourage people is anyone who has this disease state, you actually do remember things from a long time ago. And those are the memories usually that we don't share with our families. So don't feel like, oh, it's too late, you know, my dad or my mom was already diagnosed with Alzheimer's. Absolutely not. You can go back to where they lived, what their house looked like, you know, all these things, your neighbors, relationships, they will remember all of that. Capture as much as you can. I just want to encourage you.

SPEAKER_02 9:07

Yeah, and we're very mindful, especially for those who have Alzheimer's or um dementia. That's why we do multiple sessions to give them a break, but we also are very patient through that process because we understand there are pieces that are missing and it can feel a bit frustrating. But we do capture everything that they can remember, and that's the biggest piece.

SPEAKER_01 9:28

What do you think are the big things that you've heard? I'm just curious overall. I feel like people wish they would have taken more vacations, but outside of that, I'm just curious.

SPEAKER_02 9:37

I think the biggest thing is a lot of individuals do not share their experiences as far as the love that and affection that they have for their children or their loved ones. It's almost like they're not comfortable sharing that piece. So that part has been eye-opening. I had a client who said, I never told my son I love him, but he was able to put that on camera. And it's just uncomfortable, you know, maybe because they've never had that experience before. And I think that holds a huge piece in this aspect. You can say things that you aren't comfortable saying to a person face to face, you know.

SPEAKER_01 10:14

No, I absolutely agree with you. And it is everybody's different, right? Yeah, so no judgment, right? I I happen to tell everybody I love them all the time, including my employees, before I hang out with them, like, okay, bye, I love you. I mean, I just because I I'm just I love everybody. But people might think, oh, she just loves everybody. But at the end of the day, everybody's different, and God created us that way. So stay tuned because we're gonna give Mimi's information in our next segment. But I think this is so critical for us to really dive deep into our spirits to see what it is we really want to share with others. We'll be back in just a moment. Welcome back to the Legacy Project. And we are so incredibly blessed to be here with Mimi. Mimi, I'm gonna have you say your last name.

SPEAKER_02 11:10

Mulugeta.

SPEAKER_01 11:11

Yes, it wouldn't have sounded like that if I'd said it. But Mimi came up with an incredible idea, and you know, it's in front of all of us every day, honestly. And I do want to encourage people, communication is key, right, Mimi? I mean, some people wear their emotions on their sleeves and others don't. But let's be intentional about our family specifically and the generations to come. So, one of the things you mentioned as far as communication was how it leaves something for the people that are coming after you, a great grandchild that you may never even see. Tell us a little bit about that impact as you're doing some of these recordings.

SPEAKER_02 11:54

It's always beautiful to actually see how leaving your story behind and sharing your history and what you've overcome, the challenges you've overcome, really provides this gift to your loved ones because one of the things that we know to be true, right, if God is the same yesterday, today, and forever, then what he has done in your life, he will also do in your loved ones' life. So a story that I remember clearly was really when we first started, we were helping a father who wanted to share his story, and one of the things that he shared was he filed bankruptcy a couple of times before he had this big conglomerate business that his son only knew. And he shared that you know he was very hard on his son because he didn't want his son to go through the same trials that he had gone through, but he never shared that he filed bankruptcy a few times, right? He put that in the video though. So him and his son, not a great relationship, but his son finally watched the video and found this information out. And his son never shared with his father that he was also going through financial difficulties. Because of that, he said his eyes were open and he said, Man, all this time my father has been drilling in my mind these steps that I should have taken to avoid the same path that my father had gone through. It was amazing to see that. And so sometimes we don't even know that our challenges are the challenges that our children and our children's children will face. But when you share your testimony, your life, you're able to provide this awakening in within your children and your children's children to know that God is going to be faithful through my own life because he did it to the one that has left me. You know what I mean? And I I think back at the story of Josiah, King Josiah, right? King Josiah had a terrible father, he had a terrible father's father, and they did terrible things in in Israel. And then he stumbled on David's writing, and he read David's writing, and he's completely changed the trajectory of Israel based on his great great grandfather's life and testimony. And that's what we're doing. We're making sure that we change the trajectory of your loved one's life by you sharing what the faithfulness of what the Lord has done in your life, the real story and being transparent and not hiding anything.

SPEAKER_01 14:30

Because at the end of the day, it's a real thing. It's called iniquity and it's called generational curses. So if there is something that is in your family line, 99.9% chance someone below you is going to deal with the same issues. So you need to come against that. I mean, we know what the power of the blood of Jesus is, and that can be cleansing and refreshing, and you can start brand spanking new, just like that story is that Mimi just told. But I think it's really important to be transparent. You know, nobody wants to talk about the bankruptcy. You try to hide things like that. But at the end of the day, there is something that your son or daughter may have picked up about that that you should be transparent about, and they can learn from it ahead of time instead of unfortunately after they pass watching a video and going, Oh, now I get it, right? I mean, I love this episode because we can all do this right now. We can be completely transparent. We can talk about relationships, we can talk about mistakes. Guess what? We've all made them. This isn't a secret. Everyone has made a mistake. Financial, relational, whatever it is. You pray that you learn through that, but you also want to share it so the next generation doesn't do it. So I love this, Mimi. I love what you're doing. Tell our listeners how to get a hold of you and if they want to do something, I mean, besides just every Monday getting their own cell phones out and recording something special about themselves. And you can do it all by yourselves with your cell phone. But if you'd like a professional and you want it done really the right way, Mimi, tell us how to get a hold of you because I love this idea you came up with.

SPEAKER_02 16:11

Absolutely. You could get in contact with me by going on the oneandonlypublishing.com with the number one. And just remember it is a documentary style video, so it's like a Netflix documentary style video. It's actually kind of cool and very cinematic. And then a keepsake book that you can also give to your loved ones. So they have pictures and everything in that book so they could keep for themselves.

SPEAKER_01 16:34

So you have the documentary and the book? Yeah. Okay, all for the low price of 12K. 12,000. $12,000. And you're probably thinking that's a lot, but what is your life worth? A lot more than that if you want to share it. So thank you, Mimi, for what you're doing. I love this. I love stories. So if you have any other really unique scenarios that are coming to your mind, can you share those with us? Because people are getting inspired right now. We all want to make a difference in the world, right?

SPEAKER_02 17:06

Yeah, for sure. Another story that I had, and it also leads to the generational, you know, curses, is that one of my clients, she did the video for her mother, and through that she found out that addiction was in her family. That was a huge iniquity in her family. So what she did, because she had no idea that her father and her father's father was, you know, an alcoholic and everything, that allowed her to really speak to her children about what is in the family to avoid those things from happening. And she said it was extremely eye-opening for her because that was something that she secretly was dealing with with inside of her, but she wasn't comfortable sharing with her entire family. But it gave her that sense of understanding that this can be broken because it was broken in her previous uh in her generation, in her previous generation.

SPEAKER_01 18:00

And then another I want to share really quick before you talk about the next story. So addiction, and this is just so fascinating to me. If you have a drug addiction, let's just hypothetically, all right, so your child might have an alcohol addiction, the next child might have a sexual addiction, the next child, just because it's the addiction, it's the spirit of addiction where they can't do just a little bit, they have to do all of this. So I just want to encourage people, you can come against that with the power and the name and the authority of the name of Jesus. And you can break those addiction cycles for the next generation. So I just want to encourage you, don't be fearful of that. Obviously, be transparent and communicate, but know that it shows its ugly head in a lot of different ways. And so the only way to get rid of that is by getting rid of that with the power and the blood of Jesus, and obviously going to rehab in the natural doing things, that can change your course of your life. Okay, go ahead. Sorry, Mimi, I just got off on my tangent.

SPEAKER_02 18:58

Yeah, no, that's good. That was good. Another one I would have to say is more personal for me because I did one for my father and my mother. And one thing that I learned from my father was he was abandoned in front of he he was left as a child in front of someone's doorstep, and I never knew that about his life. But that led to understanding why his need for acceptance was so heavy throughout his life, you know. Um he was a people pleaser, which in turn made me a people pleaser. And so it was definitely something that allowed me to genuinely heal and realize like my job is not to be a people pleaser, but to be, you know, to do what the Lord is telling me, regardless of pleasing people. And it it freed me, you know, to hear that. But when he talked about it, it allowed me to lead him to understand why he was such a people pleaser, which he didn't even realize, you know. So he's still alive and I love him, and he's he's definitely older in age, but he was like his eyes open, and he said, Whoa, like this is why I always want people to love me and accept me. Yeah. So I think that was extremely healing for both of us.

SPEAKER_01 20:11

And it comes full circle, it really does when given the opportunity, and that's what you're providing. You're providing an opportunity. And do you have set questions that you ask people?

SPEAKER_02 20:23

We do, we have a set questions, and we also ask the family to provide any questions that they want, but we also let the Holy Spirit lead. We let people just flow. You know, we want to make sure that we engage in a conversation, not just an interview.

SPEAKER_01 20:37

And when you really know someone deep down inside, you know their spirit and their soul, you have just a passion to want to share that information and you go finding stuff, I'm sure, through the power of the Holy Spirit. So I'm grateful for this. I just want to encourage our listeners, anyone that's tuning in, if you don't have the $12,000, I get it. You can do this every day. We have to be intentional though. There are so many distractions that come into our world, and I just want to encourage you, if you are especially older in age, knowing that your years are limited, I mean, all of our years are limited, but take the time, pay it forward, give the next generation something that is really important to you that you can pass on. I am grateful for you, Mimi. Thank you so much for encouraging all of us today. Thank you, listeners, for tuning in to Next Steps for Seniors Conversations on Aging. The next years can be the best years. Thank you for tuning in to Next Steps for Seniors. Our podcast drops twice a week, Tuesdays and Fridays at 7 a.m. Find us on your favorite podcast platform and be sure to subscribe so you never miss an episode. To learn more about Next Steps for Seniors, visit us at Next Steps Number Four Seniors.com.