Looking Back: As a career person in my twenties and through years of raising three children, it seemed I was focused on the future more often than the past. A few years ago, when I survived an encounter with cancer, I came to appreciate the present, the gift of every precious day. Now, I have time to myself when I choose, to garden, to knit, and to look back, with interest and at times with the passion of a detective, at my family’s past.
The matriarch who inspired me to start genealogy research was Nana, my great-grandmother, who died just before her 108th birthday, in 1987. I had the privilege of meeting her once on a visit to the UK, but most of what I know of her life has been shared with me by dozens of descendants. Many of them continue to hold an annual reunion that started as a birthday celebration for our dear Nana.
With just a little research, I have found some stunning information about another great-grandmother, Charlotte. Her story led me to understand very clearly that my passion is not so much for their dates and facts, but for their stories. The more I can discover of their times and lives, the more I understand what my story should be.
Contact: You can email me me at lynda@dealwithyourpast.com
