I feel like simply doing a genealogy and calling it quits really leaves a lot unfinished. How much more could you get out of your genealogy if you learned something about the history and reality of the names and dates that you are writing down? You might learn something about yourself, your talents, inclinations, desires, and pet peeves. And knowledge, as well all know, is power.
The internet and historic documents can be one starting point. For example, if you know that someone came to America through Ellis Island, find that record. They included all kinds of information in there, including who they traveled with, who they were going to see, and sometimes things like eye color and build.
Another thing you can do is to look through old family records. Did anyone save old papers from your ancestors? Medical records, journals, even receipts and ticket stubs can help you fill out the personality and life of family that has passed on.
Check in with your family, too. You can get all kinds of other information from your living family as well. Ask them to tell you stories about their childhood, their favorite aunt or uncle, what their grandparents were like, etc. As you listen carefully to stories that you may have already heard before, you may notice details you had overlooked previously. And starting into story-telling has this organic way of growing, of spinning into other tales, other family stories and histories and lessons learned. Run with it.
As you learn more of the details of others who have gone before you, you might start seeing family patterns. You family is part of who you are, and the more you learn of them, the more you might find that you learn about yourself.
I suggest whatever your writing level might be to create a family history. Do it with as many or as few words as you desire. If you're wordy, go with that. Write out all the memories you or others have of various people in your family, of family trips, illnesses, special events. Go as far back and as you can. Write about overarching family dramas and about tiny details. Write out some short stories based on these very real people. Maybe you'll even come away with something worth publishing. If not for the general masses, then at least something for your extended family to enjoy.
And what if you don't like writing? You have loads of other options for all of that information. You can video tape your interviews and turn it into a family documentary. And if you don't have an affinity for technology? You can use what you find and create some scrapbook pages, paint a mural, make a representational quilt, or sculpt a three-dimensional family tree with symbolic meaning. You can create a running family tree in a hallway with photographs, drawings, and paintings.
There's so much that can be done. So let's do it. And if you are so inclined, write me and tell me what you've done.
