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The conversation collection · 25 questions

25 questions to ask your dad
about his life.

You do not need to work through a list. Ask about one ordinary day, a first job, or someone he remembers. Let his answer decide where the conversation goes next.

Free to read. No email or purchase needed.
01

Childhood

  1. What was the best place to play near your childhood home?
  2. What were you always trying to take apart, build, or figure out?
  3. What did a typical Saturday look like when you were ten?
02

Home and family

  1. Who in your family taught you a practical skill you still use?
  2. What household rule made sense to you only later?
03

Friendship

  1. Who was your closest friend when you were young?
  2. What was an adventure with a friend that did not go according to plan?
  3. Who could you count on during a difficult stretch?
04

First jobs

  1. What was your first job, and what did you spend your first paycheck on?
  2. What did a coworker teach you that you could not have learned in school?
  3. Was there a job you considered but never tried?
05

Love and partnership

  1. What do you remember about an early date that still makes you smile?
  2. What have you learned about being a good partner or friend?
06

Fatherhood

  1. What did you think being a father would be like before it happened?
  2. What did you learn from your children that you did not expect?
  3. What is a quiet moment with the family that you remember well?
07

Traditions

  1. What was the meal everyone wanted you to make?
  2. Which family ritual would you like the next generation to continue?
08

Risks and turning points

  1. What is a mistake that taught you something useful?
  2. When did you take a chance on something you cared about?
09

Lessons

  1. What did you think being an adult would feel like?
  2. What changed the way you think about a good life?
10

Ordinary days

  1. What is one ordinary day from your past you would like to experience again?
  2. What object have you kept for years, and what is its story?
  3. What is something about you that the family might be surprised to learn?
Take the first story home

A little space
for their words.

Download One Story to Keep, a free eight-page booklet with gentle questions, room to write, and a page for the story behind a photograph.

Print a few pages, sit together, and begin wherever the memory takes you. You can also write from your own memories of someone.

Download A4 PDF Download US Letter PDF

English · 8 pages · PDF, about 145 KB each
Free to download. No email or purchase needed. Print at 100%.

Ready to keep more of the story? Find a place for the next chapter in a printed journal.

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One answer can become
a story worth keeping.

Want to go deeper? Explore WistMem Dad.

Explore Dad’s Journal
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