By: Helena Rose
This article describes a storytelling group with older people living in a nursing home in the UK, developed in collaboration with creative activity workers as part of a diploma in narrative therapy. Grounded in collective narrative practice, including the Tree of Life, the group created experiences of connection, dignity and legacy among residents (many of whom were living with memory loss). The project reconnected the author with the social and political roots of narrative therapy, creating space to resist ageism, individualism and marginalisation through shared storytelling, witnessing and community rituals.
Key words: storytelling; Tree of Life; groupwork; older people; aged care; dementia; collective narrative practice; narrative therapy
Rose, H. D. (2026). Reclaiming the Tree of Life: Collective storytelling, re-membering and legacy in later life. International Journal of Narrative Therapy and Community Work, (1), 138–148. https://doi.org/10.4320/ACNW1376