Homemade Father's Day Gift: Create a Memory Journal

If you are looking for a homemade gift to give for Father's Day this year, consider giving a memory journal. Often times children see their parents as just...parents. They may not take the time to realize that in the course of their parents' lives, there have been stories to tell. The beauty of a memory journal is it will allow the child to learn more about their father as a person and the life they have lived.

A memory journal is an ideal gift at any age. It is also very simple to do. Perhaps the hardest part will be deciding exactly what it is you want to know about your father. To make a memory journal, you will need a journal of some sort. You can purchase some very interesting journals at places like Barnes and Noble, or you can save some money and buy a simple journal and personalize it yourself. Remember how you would cover your school textbooks with a brown paper bag? You can use this same idea with decorative paper instead. If you visit the scrapbook section of a craft store, they will have a multitude of decorative paper in many themes. You are sure to find one that will be suitable for your dad.

Once you have the journal, make up a list of interview type questions that you would like to have answered by your father. Some examples are:

What was the best day of your life? What was the worst?

Describe your point of view on the day I was born.

Describe a typical day of your life as a child.

Describe the first car you ever owned. How much did it cost? How did you purchase it?

Describe the first job you ever had. How much did it pay?

You can either write these questions on the top of each page of the journal, or you may consider writing each question on a piece of paper and putting it in a decorative jar. An advantage of putting them in a jar is that it will not limit the amount of space he has to answer each question. If there is a question that you ask that brings back a flood of memories, he won't have to worry about his answer running into the next question. Just have him copy the question at the start of each entry.

When you give your father his gift, write up a set of instructions on what you would like him to do with the journal and why. Tell him when he has completed the journal, you would eventually like to have the journal back. The point of the journal is that it will create bonding moments between you and your dad. Tell him you would like to learn things that you may not have known about the man who helped bring you into this life. You may be amazed at the life he has lived. You may learn just how different his childhood was from your childhood.

The best part of this journal is that it will create a keepsake for you. It will also create a written opportunity for future generations to learn about the man who was your father.