We're losing so many people, and with them our family histories and identities. With lockdown in force, so little to inspire us, and bonds between families needing creative ways to strengthen them, why not use this time to spark conversations and collect oral histories? A thread.

When we lose older people we are bereft of their company but also a part of our own personal histories. Narratives that shape younger generations are at risk. So many elders are being lost which is why it's so important right now to record stories while we still have time.

Life for so many people seems to have slowed during the lockdown. As restrictions endure storytelling can be a way to fill our days with meaning. It's 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 need our own worlds, some solace, and not just when we're bereaved. Family anecdotes passed down from generations addresses that need. It's wise to capture the stories while we have of 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 personal and family stories is a powerful way to recreate essential bonds between younger and older generations which 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. They've experienced adventures and feelings we may not necessarily associate with them. Handing down family lore establishes a healthy understanding of age and perspective.

Sharing stories 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. It's also way to help them through feeling low during lockdown.

Conversations might require sensitivity and courage, especially if family histories open old wounds such as stories of war, partition, displacement, suffering and loss. But broaching these topics, showing interest, engagement, can bring mutual respect and a sense of healing.

The time is now to create records of our elders. This documentation is a balm when families lose their elders. The records we keep now can benefit future generations The child unborn – or too young when she lost her grandparent, might grow up wishing to know more about her roots.

A good place to start is asking elders to help draw family trees. And those sepia-tinted family photographs that one always intended to digitise or those old VHS tapes and projector reels? The time is now!

If you don't know how to start the conversation to prompt past stories and experiences, or you feel awkward about broaching past subjects, here are some ideas to help you get going on collecting those magical stories, whether your a child, an adult or an 'elder'...

Young children can begin by asking parents or grandparents to describe what they were like at their age and what they did for fun. What did their house look like? Describe the street? What was school like? Who were their friends? No TV history documentary can match these stories.

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.

Elders themselves should also be proactive. When you're on a zoom call, bring an object, photo or newspaper clipping which can be the starting point for curiosity and context.

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.

Family storytelling shows us our elders as people with dreams, aspirations, hopes, demons and obstacles. We might learn why they think and behave as they do. As the saying goes, you can only know where you're going, when you know where you've been. Grab the stories while you can.