what makes us suddenly start researching our ancestors?

[Bryan.]

My father was a black sheep of the family, when I born we moved from Sheffield into Nottinghamshire.

He never spoke about his parents or his siblings, but one, his sister, who used to visit.

He died many years ago and I was left with a 'void ' for my background, I was the only one with my surname in Nottinghamshire and no one to ask 'who was I', so being the same minded (nosey) as the rest of you 'rootschatters' I decided it was time to fill in the 'void'.

I have found two cousins, a second cousin with the promise of another plus I have the enthusiasm and help from friends and so minded people as the ones on this great site, to fill the void.

Bryan

 

[Emmeline]

Dear Supersan - Thomas Keneally ( well known Australian) summed it up for me - he wrote:-
' There is a new religion - the type that sees colonials beetling through ancestral relics and documentation. The impulse to know who our great grandparents were is a profound impulse, an instinctive tendency towards ancestor worship - a natural religion, almost genetic. We re-invigorate our imagination by finding our ghosts, even if they were a crazy pack of bastards' -
Love it !

[piedstilt]

What a sad story, Flipster - I mean the loss of all that knowledge.  In our family we all thought we would remember the old stories, but we forgot to write it down and after the oldies had gone it suddenly all became very vague.

Love the Kenneally quote, Emmeline. Love Thomas Kenneally, actually. I met him once at a book festival here in NZ when my husband and I were asked to 'mind' him for a couple of hours. Ended up at the nearest pub and had a fabulous time talking and listening to him.

Ros

[Wendy Mc]

Well said Tom!!!!!!   (as usual)


Thanks Emm,



cheers,


Wendy

[Emmeline]

Dear Piedstilt - What a great story to tell another Kiwi. Thank you.
Thank you WendyMc - Glad you appreciated it.

[Flipster]

What a sad story, Flipster - I mean the loss of all that knowledge.  In our family we all thought we would remember the old stories, but we forgot to write it down and after the oldies had gone it suddenly all became very vague.

Ros

It is sad but I'm enjoying walking in her footsteps.  If only I could make bread pudding the way she did - my inheritance was her secret recipe, she never gave it to anyone else!  Maybe she knew then that this would be my destiny...canny woman, my Nan 

[piedstilt]

Great you had such a bond with your gran, Flipster. Mine were  formidable little old ladies in black dresses and I never knew them well enough to feel affection rather than duty! (It's Sunday afternoon and you are visiting your grandmother, like it or not ...).

Ros

[Flipster]

Oh I had one of those too.  Maternal grandmother was awful.  When I returned from NZ I went to see where her ashes were scattered in the crematorium.  I guessed straight away - there was a huge bank of nettles!!  No love lost there as you can tell. Though her family are very interesting with all sorts of scandals emerging...One up to me!

[GalaxyJane]

Makes you wonder though what happened to make those formidable black clad ladies the way they were.
        What were they like as children or young women,did they have hopes and dreams that went sour or were they born with a lemon in their mouth?
If those old photos could only speak...