It's one thing to bequeath antiques and jewelry to the kids and grandkids, but it's quite another to leave them your life story, says Janet Meservy, president of Sensible Senior Homecare Agency.

For senior citizens, memorializing life stories and experiences into the written word or a recording can be one of the most meaningful items one can leave behind for family members, she said.

To that end, a free class on creating a family journal will be offered at 12:15 p.m. Monday at the Lake Elsinore Senior Center, 420 E. Lakeshore Drive. Hosted by the senior care agency, it's a chance to learn the basics about creating such a record, Meservy said.

"It is not a scrapbooking class," Meservy said. "It's leaving a legacy for your children, telling them about your life, the things you've accomplished, the places you've been. It's a great story about who you are and what you've left here."

Those who attend the class will be given a handout that lists some of the important things in one's life to include in the memoir and how to organize the information, among other tips, said Tim Crawford, a Sensible Senior Homecare employee.

"We'll talk about some of the things that are important that most people don't realize are important," Crawford said. "They may see it as mundane, something that happened 50 years ago, but their kids or grandkids would love to know that."

Crawford said he helped his grandfather create a memoir, and during the process learned for the first time about his experiences serving in World War II.

"It wasn't until the very end of his life that I found out he was a Seabee in World War II," said Crawford, 42.

The class will include examples of families that have undergone the process and grown closer through it, Crawford said, citing his own experience as one such instance.

For people with arthritis or frail hands who may consider writing an extensive journal daunting, the class also will cover other ways of creating the memoir, such as typing it out or through audio or video recordings, he said.

Crawford likened the family journal to a personal time capsule to be passed on through the generations.

"A lot of things that people don't think to pass down to their kids is just their life story," he said. "This will help teach them how to capture what they did in their life."

For information, call the senior center at 951-674-2526 or Crawford at 951-553-5785.