Canada Day reminds us of the incredible country we call home. Summer invites us outdoors. Families gather for backyard barbecues, weekends at the cottage, vacations, reunions, and evenings spent around the table long after the meal has ended.

If you stop and think about it, some of life’s greatest stories are shared during moments like these.

Someone recalls their first job. A Grandad tells the story of meeting Grandma for the first time. Grandma laughs about raising a young family when money was tight. An uncle remembers learning to drive. A family recipe suddenly comes with a story no one has ever heard before.

We’ve all experienced these moments.

Someone begins a sentence with, “Have I ever told you about the time…”? Suddenly, everyone is listening.

As a Guided Autobiography facilitator, I have the privilege of hearing remarkable stories every week. Yet one thing continues to surprise me. The storyteller often believes their story isn’t very interesting. “It’s just my life, nobody is interested”. Sadly, I hear those words far too often. But to children, grandchildren and even complete strangers, those stories are priceless.

They reveal where we came from.and remind us how resilient previous generations were. They also help us understand our families but perhaps most importantly, they help us understand and truly appreciate ourselves as we look at our lives retrospectively..

This summer, I’d like to offer you a simple challenge. Askat least one deep and meaningful question. Instead of talking about the weather, ask your mother what she remembers about her first home, ask your father what receiving his first paycheque felt like, ask Grandma about the happiest day of her childhood. ask Grandpa what advice he would give his twenty year old self.

Then do something even more important. Listen as intently as you possibly can.

The older I get, the more I realize that stories are one of the greatest gifts we can give each other. They preserve memories, create understanding, strengthen relationships, and remind us that every life has meaning.

When I left the automotive industry after nearly forty years, I had no idea where life would lead me. Today, I feel incredibly fortunate that it led me here, to helping people preserve the stories that might otherwise be forgotten.

During this beautiful Canadian summer, I hope you’ll make time to create new memories but don’t forget to preserve the old ones, one conversation, one question, one story at a time because someday, someone will wish they had asked one more question.