Saturday, March 21, 2015

As Always, A Day Late And A Dollar Short

I have been gathering basic information about genealogy for several years.  I have copies of several forms (which I need to fill out) and I have several pages of questions to ask relatives (which I combined from several different websites).  I often wondered how I would get to ask those questions since I only have a few uncles on my mother’s side of the family still living and they all live out of state.

I thought about asking a few questions in each phone call or writing several letters with a question/answer format, but decided I wanted to ask these questions in person to see the smiles on their faces while recalling a specific memory.  I had been trying to get some vacation time for several months, but then the unthinkable happened.

My Uncle Bill suddenly passed away.

Again, I have more questions than answers.  (Do you see a theme here?  I even have two other relatives that I missed the opportunity of asking questions due to a death-besides my father and uncle).  I am always a day late and a dollar short as the saying goes.

The only difference this time is that I have a few other family members on my mother's side that can help provide me with some answers and memories about her side of the family.


Now, it is time to get to know some of my family.  Please join me in quest as I go “Searching For Ancestors”.

4 comments:

Barb said...

Janice, Good luck with your quest. I wish I had asked more questions about my ancestors while my older relatives were alive too.

Jo Henn said...

Good Luck with your project!

I live so far away from my family and was always afraid of calling at the wrong time, that I sent emails with about 12 broad questions. And followed up with more depending on the answers - if I got answers. Some gave me beautiful long responses. Others were most upset at being asked to remember what they didn't want to remember (which seemed to be their whole childhood). I wish you better luck!

Crissouli said...

I thought I had asked Dad almost every question possible, but when caring for him with Alzheimer's, I kept thinking of so many more..alas it was too late, as his memory was failing and he was far too confused, frustrated or simply too tired to be bothered.

His stock answer was 'it's nothing to do with you'. He often became irritated or aggressive, not so much with my questions, but with his inability to understand.

Contact your relatives as soon as you can, in any way that you can. Perhaps call them if you can't visit, tell tgem you are posting some questions, then follow up with another call and ask for their thoughts, stories,rather than answers. That way, it will be more relaxed. Good luck..

Kathryn said...

Janice, wishing you great success on your search and welcome to Geneabloggers! I also started searching as a result of my Dad and I realize how fortunate I was that he was able to pass on his knowledge of the family history to me. There are still many questions I wish I'd asked and this is a great reminder to ask questions while we can. Good luck!