Climbing



Why do we go on searching, striving to climb the family tree?
The chosen family story tellers – we are the keepers of history.
Called to record the knowledge of all our ancestors and kin,
We recall their wonderful stories and make them live again.

Genealogists are story keepers……………..remembering.

Digging to discover them – so many people, dates and places,
Bibles, reunions and pictures, sorting all those names and faces,
Abstracts, censuses and will –many kinds of documentation,
Then, fact by fact, we assemble each preceding generation.

Roots, leaves and branches make trees………recording.

To learn where they lived, and how they farmed their lands,
Real people just like us, with beating hearts and weary hands.
They are not only some names found on dusty bookshelves.
Knowing our ancestors we are more able to know ourselves.

Real people with warm hearts………………..understanding.

Genealogy is our hobby, our love—some consider it an obsession,
To find something of great-great-grandpa’s, a long lost possession.
Reaching back to our forefathers fills the soul with love and pride.
Like knowing great- grandma before she was great-grandpa’s bride.

Grandma and Grandpa held this!........................connecting.

Finding a grave in a cemetery, standing there forgotten and alone.,
and with joyful, tearful eyes, before the weathered old stone,
We talk to our loved one, “Grandma, how proud you would be!
Your great-grandkids are grown; you have a wonderful family,”

A quiet moment for heartfelt emotions………………feeling.

Drawing strength from many land and times, our roots go deep.
Different cultures and traditions are treasures we must keep.
Knowing and remembering our forefathers as links to the past,
Thus we build a strong family that will last and last and last.

Uniqueness and variety in our past…………….honoring.

Genealogy is more than lots of records or a filled-in pedigree chart,
Families need embellished, treasured, like precious work of art.
The tales of travels and traditions – trials, triumphs and tears;
Wonderful stories of our ancestors to cherish through the years.

The joys and glories of family stories…………………sharing.

Source:  Monty C. Peden, Everton’s Genealogical Helper, October 2001, page 53

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