ancestry – Through My Eyes

Genealogy 101

Last year I briefly touched on Genealogy. Here’s more of the meat of the subject. I never knew when I first started my journey some thirty plus years ago that I would still be working on this. Yes there have been time I just pushed it aside to do other things but I somehow keep coming back to this huge puzzle.

If you are not familiar with the subject watch the movie “Roots”. While there is a lot in the movie I don’t agree with and some down right untruths, it is what initially motivated me to explore my own roots. It was how they conducted the search that interested me.

Fortunately for me our local community college that has a library dedicated to genealogy and family history. Lets begin at the beginning. Let me just say, if you plan on just using Ancestry or one of the other online sites they are helpful but you won’t find everything there. I started my search before Ancestry went online so I went to a lot of courthouse and walked a lot of graveyards.

Here are some great links to begin your research:

Welcome to NGS’s Free Genealogy Resources

This site is great for beginners and has downloadable forms you can print. One in particular you will need is the family group sheet. This site gives a lot of detail. You also might want to visit the following sites

https://www.ancestry.com,https://www.cyndislist.com and https://www.pdffiller.com/jsfiller-desk18/?flat_pdf_quality=low&mode=force_choice&requestHash=1a4b6441fad602df5076b9b3b8de4db4d7d87ff9a4af340a0a1a0769a64d6b4e&projectId=1441784578&loader=tips&MEDIUM_PDFJS=true&PAGE_REARRANGE_V2_MVP=true&richTextFormatting=true&isPageRearrangeV2MVP=true&jsf-page-rearrange-v2=true&LATEST_PDFJS=true&jsf-document-scroll-zoom=true&jsf-redesign-full=true&act-notary-pro-integration=false&jsf-dss-v2=false&routeId=e2eb102734cb1c24fb2836d9cc9bfab3#9b9794ea705f4efa9a21318c84c23213
This link will get you to an online fillable ancestry chart that you can either fill in online or print out and use. Also, https://www.archives.gov/research/genealogy,https://familyhistorydaily.com/genealogy-resources/50-free-genealogy-sites

You can begin now by filling out the following form:

The family group sheet is the first sheet you will need. Start with your family and complete as much information as you have then do one for your parents, grandparents, etc.

As you collect your data keep a research log to keep up with where you found the information.

If you appreciate this information and would like to start digging your own roots, don’t forget to like, share and follow for more tips and resources.

Have a great day.

R e s p e c t

Aretha Franklin said it best, “All I need is a little RESPECT”. In the song she implied nothing was as important as respect. That is something our world is lacking right now and something I can relate to. For each person respect may mean something different. For me it simply means being valued for who you are. If you are not being valued maybe you need to evaluate the reason why.

This photo was among many of civil war officers who gave their lives for this country. They earned RESPECT. They fought in the bloodiest battle to ever take place on this continent. It wasn’t about slavery like most people think, it was about the right to protect their own land, to live freely without the government stepping in and destroying what was theirs. While it was a matter of greed from the Yankees, it was a matter of life or death for the Confederates. Before criticizing the Civil War take the time to read about it and the people who fought the battle. These men and women were valued and respected and should always be.

In my grandmother’s photo albums were pictures like these of people who were unidentified but who appear to be someone who might have been respected. How we perceive people has a lot to do with whether they are respected or not. While this gentleman appears to be someone of middle or uppler class, don’t let the clothes fool you. He could have also been someone in a borrowed suit. Get to know people before you judge them.

Women have not always been respected as a whole and still are not in some cultures. While women have come a long ways, just being respected because you are a woman or just because of your race is not enough. If you want to be respected make sure you are worthy of respect, don’t just assume you will get it. How you conduct yourself in regard to other people will determine the level of respect you receive.

People have not always liked me but I have in most situations been respected. Don’t judge what other people do unless you are willing to judge yourself first. I am probably a lot harder on myself than anyone else. I am comfortable in my own skin and try to value others equally. Race means little to me, it’s the person under the skin that matters!

Have a wonderful day and show some RESPECT.

Tree Limbs and Limbs of Society

In the pictures above you see one of limbs and one of roots. What do they say to you? I know you are asking what does that have to do with society? A lot!

The roots are like our own. They start out spindly but become a vast network into the soil to support what will become a massive trunk and limbs. Like this vast network we have our own supportive system that we may or may not even recognize. This country started with a small root system, just a small band of indians, they began to develop into a vast nation of people and different tribes. Then came the English who migrated to this country along with the scottish and others seeking a new life. They too settled here and developed their own colonies starting another root system. Already these are two different groups with two different root systems and lifestyles. More immigrants came to develop their own root systems and those systems became strong truncks. They were still fairly separate at this point but already at odds with the other systems (races). They didn’t understand each other’s lifestyle and language much like some trees can’t grow together because one of them will wilt and die.

If you look at the limbs though, they have a purpose. These limbs help to balance the tree and provide seed for new trees. Now look at trees that have no limbs, they are dying or already dead. In society, we have lots of trees (origins of people) with lots of limbs (groups within those origins). All of these limbs are important to balance the tree and all of the trees are important to develop the forest (our country). While the original owners and keepers of this land were the Native Americans, all races have added value to this country. It’s time we learn to lean on each other and strengthen this tree! No tree deserves to die!