An atlas of us: Chart your family history

A new way to tell an old story.

Rachel Ding

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A new way to tell an old story

This doc was originally made for my grandpa, who helped raise me and my brothers, after retiring from a career in marine navigation and immigrating to Canada with my parents in the 80s. For years, he'd tell us about what it was like growing up in China, spending a decade of exile in Taiwan, and rebuilding his family in Hong Kong.

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My grandpa & ship mates

In 2016, I had the privilege of stepping into his past for a brief moment, during

A visit to China⁠

, when my brother, cousin, and I accompanied my grandfather to his hometown. While I captured a snapshot of that experience in photographs, I know there is so much history behind them.

As my grandpa approaches his late 90’s, I’ve been interested in new ways to document our family history in collaboration with relatives, who can help bridge generational gaps in knowledge and language.

Feel free to

copy this template

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to create a virtual “treasure chest” for your own family.

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“To know who we are, is to know who they were.” — Steven Spielberg

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It takes a village to raise a doc.

Thank you to all those who helped create this template!

Cover photo credit: Joanna Kosinska via Unsplash; Sample data: Adapted from the families of ‘This is Us’ (NBC Television)

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