I asked my grandson what he knew about my life. He said, “You make good soup.”

I smiled when he said it at first.

But later, I couldn’t stop thinking about it. 

Because the truth is… that’s all he knew.

Around that same time, I came across a Harvard study that followed over 700 people for 80 years.

They found the single biggest predictor of a happy life wasn’t money or success. It was being truly known by the people you love.

And it hit me harder than I expected – 

The people I love most… don’t really know me.

I didn’t want to be remembered as “the one who makes good soup.”

I wanted them to know who I really was.

So I sat down one afternoon and tried to write it all out.

And I just… couldn’t. The page stayed blank.

I’ve never been a writer. Not in school, not ever. I’d write a sentence, stare at it, cross it out, start again, and somehow it still never felt right.

So after a few frustrating attempts, I gave up.

Until a few weeks later, I saw something on Facebook.

An old friend of mine had posted that she’d written a book about her life.

I actually laughed a little when I saw it.

Because I remembered her birthday cards. They were always so empty, so short, that you almost wondered if she forgot what to say halfway through.

So I messaged her.

I asked, “How on earth did you write a book?”

She replied almost immediately.

She told me she didn’t really “write” it the way I was imagining.

Instead, she used Memo, a service that guided her through it – asking her around 50 simple questions about her life.

All she had to do was answer them. And somehow, those answers were turned into a beautifully written book.

It sounded almost too easy.

But I decided to try it anyway.

And to my surprise… it didn’t feel overwhelming at all.

Memo questions were gentle. Thoughtful. Almost like someone was sitting there with me, helping me remember.

One question would lead to another memory. Then another. Then another. For the first time, I didn’t feel stuck. I felt supported.

I found myself looking forward to it each day – just sitting down, answering a few questions, and watching my life slowly come together in a way I had never seen before.

And before I knew it, just a few weeks had passed…

And my book was finished.

My life. On paper. When it arrived, I held it in my hands for a long time before opening it.

Then I wrapped it up and gave it to my grandson.

He took it home.

A few days later, he came back to see me.

And the first thing he said was “Grandma… I didn’t know you lived a life like that.”

In that moment I knew I had given him something far more important than anything I’d ever cooked.

And if you’ve ever had that same thought – “I wish they really knew me” – there’s a simple way to begin. You can take a free 1-minute quiz and see what your own life story could look like as a book.