I have such a great love for my family, both for the living and for the dead. I enjoy learning about my direct ancestors, and their immediate family members. I love to read their personal histories, and try to imagine what I would have done if I were faced in their situations. There have been times where I have read my ancestors' histories, and have found myself crying for them. We learn about their experiences in history classes, but I don't believe that it really hits home until we read about their trials through their own words. That is when we can truly appreciate all that they had sacrificed, and went through for us.
Have you had the desire to learn more about your family history, but don't know how to get started? Well, my suggestion is pretty simple. Start with yourself. Write down your full name, your birthdate, and birth place. Surely, you have parents and possibly some siblings. Write their names down, and their information. If you happen to be married, or have children, write down their information as well. Move out from there. If you get stuck, don't be afraid to reach out to other family members for help. If they cannot, don't give up. Continue to search, and think of ways that you could find more information about your family members.
I encourage you to write in a daily journal. Please give as much detail in each of your journal entries as possible. Doing this will help your future readers in more fully understanding your experiences. Use a blue or black ballpoint pen. Blue or black ink seems to keep its color over time, while others fade out. If you don't feel comfortable with your handwriting, and would prefer to type a journal on your computer, please do it. Do not hesitate. Just do it. Your future family will appreciate learning about you, from your own words!
I have been researching my family lines for a little over 15 years. I am only 30 years old, right now. I was around 13 years old when I first started learning about my ancestors, and so you see just about anyone can research their family members. It is really simple, especially with today's technology. There are several family history research websites that can help you. The one that I prefer the most is FamilySearch. It is free to sign up, and use! There are others that cost money, and so when someone asks me which I suggest using... FamilySearch is it!
Again, I truly encourage you to start or continue to research your family's history. Your deceased family members are waiting to be remembered. They are waiting for you to share their stories with others! Please don't let them down...
You are so awesome! I have a question. My biggest stumbling block when or comes to creating my own journal is that I don't know what to write about our how to start. What do you do?
ReplyDeleteWhen I open up my journal, the very first thing that I do is write on the back of the cover. It is here that I write my name, my birthdate, my birth place, and information about my immediate family. With my very first journal entry, I always introduce myself. I look at it as if the person who is reading my journal has never met me before. I do this with each of my journals, because each one is at a different phase in my life. I may not be the same person that I was last year or even 10 years ago. So I list out the things that I enjoy doing. I list my hobbies, favorite foods, etc. When I write in my journal, I have to have absolute silence. That way I can focus, and think about what it is that I want to share in my journal. I usually wait until everyone is asleep, and I am completely alone. Once I feel that my future reader has gotten to know me.. I start to write more about my daily experiences. I take a few minutes to think about the things that happened throughout my day, and try to fine tune my memory so that I can remember all of the details. I then put those experiences onto paper in my journal, in the detail that I remember. Some may write in their journals differently, but this is how I have organized it myself. I hope that gives you an idea, or some help in your journal writing. Good Luck, Kat!-- Jacque
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