How do you come up with a gift for people who have been together for a lifetime? What do you give people who already have everything? Stuff doesn't matter, but something personal and heartfelt does. Your parents (or your grandparents) have obviously been through a lot in their 50 years of marriage. If you manage to bundle all those stories in a beautiful magazine, you will have a treasure trove of precious memories and an invaluable gift.
Together is better than alone
Are you the chief maker of the magazine? Then don't forget: together you know more than alone. Involve the couple's entire environment in the making of the magazine. Think also of neighbors, friends or acquaintances from the local sports clubs or former associations. In this way, the magazine becomes diverse and multifaceted.
Where to start?
To begin, ask yourself the following questions:
- How did your (grand)parents meet?
- Can you still find the wedding photo from 50 years ago?
- Are there any fun anecdotes from the wedding?
- How did the lives of your (grand)parents go?
- Where did they live?
- And which places in the world did they visit together?
- How many children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren did they have together?
If you can answer these questions, you usually have a start. The rest often goes without saying.
Separate the valuable from the worthless
Once you have started, you often stumble naturally from one story to the next. Sometimes, however, there are so many great stories to tell that you can't see the wood for the trees. That is why it is important to start sorting, to separate the valuable from the worthless. But how do you do that?
- Don't try to be exhaustive, you don't have to include all the stories. Only the ones you think are interesting, special or funny to share.
- Also think of nice photos, for example a series of portrait photos through the years. Does a story have nice photos that make the memories tangible? Or can you tell a nice story on the basis of a photo? If a story only has words, it is sometimes less tangible. A great photo can make a huge difference.
- Try to make a layout for the magazine. Here, too, you can start at the beginning: draw up the structure of the magazine by using the life cycle of your (grand)parents. For example, by using the timeline: "Childhood - Engagement - Marriage - Children/Work - Retirement".
Last but not least
You can now go crazy on pimping your magazine. If you let everyone make up their own page, then you can make agreements about the layout. This will bring unity to the magazine. You can also give people a free hand. Blank pages that remain can be filled with a beautiful image, a wise saying, or a romantic song or poem. A memoir is also a great birthday gift for someone turning 50.
