YOUR SUMMER ASSIGNMENT

A funny thing happened on the way to Sacrement the other day...I was asked to accept a call to be a Service Missionary who helps people with their Family Tree on FamilySearch.org! I accepted, not having any idea all the training and how quick we would have to learn everything!

For that reason I am going to go on hold for a month until I get my Mission Feet under me a bit, but just like Arnold S. "I'll Be Baaaccckkk!"

Until then, here is your assignment for the Summer...

Go to each of your elderly relatives and ask them these questions, just turn your phone to record and quietly leave it near you so you can transcribe it later. I can guarantee you won't remember half of what is shared, and the stories you will hear will be memorable!

1.  
   What is your full name?
2. 2. 
   When and where were you born?
3. 3. 
   Who is your mother?
4. 4. 
   When and where was your mother born?
5. 5. 
   What can you tell me about your mother’s relatives?
6. 6. 
   Who is your father?
7. 7. 
   When and where was your father born?
8. 8. 
   What can you tell me about your father’s relatives?
9. 9. 
   What are the full names of each of your brothers and sisters?
10. 10. 
    When and where were each of your brothers and sisters born?
11. 11. 
    What memories do you have of each of your brothers and sisters?
12. 12. 
    What schools did you and your brothers and sisters go to?
13. 13. 
    Whom did your brothers and sisters marry?
14. 14. 
    Whom did you marry?
15. 15. 
    What are the full names of each of your children?
16. 16. 
    When and where were your children born?
17. 17. 
    Whom did your children marry?
18. 18. 
    Who are your grandchildren?
19. 19. 
    What memories do you have of extended family members, such as aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents?
20. 20. 
    Where did some of these extended family members live?
21. 21. 
    What can you remember about births, marriages, and deaths of other family members?
22. 22. 
    Where are family members buried?
23. 23. 
    Did you or any of your relatives serve in the military?
24. 24. 
    Which wars did you or other relatives fight in?
25. 25. 
    Will you share some of their war stories with me?
26. 26. 
    What jobs do you remember your parents and other family members doing?
27. 27. 
    What religion or religions were practiced in your home?
28. 28. 
    What are some important spiritual experiences you have had?
29. 29. 
    Was anyone in the family interested in family history?
30. 30. 
    Are there any family members who kept a journal or who wrote a historical account of your family? Who are they? Are any of these accounts available for me to read?
31. 31. 
    Are you aware of any ancestors who emigrated from their home country to this country?
32. 32. 
    Does anyone in the family own a family Bible, a family history, or genealogical records of any kind? Who are these family members, and where do they live?
33. 33. 
    Will you show me some of your old family documents or artifacts?
34. 34. 
    Will you show me some of your old family photographs?
35. PLEASE DON'T WASTE ANOTHER DAY/WEEK/MONTH/YEAR. DO IT NOW!

Family Life Sermons

Good Morning Friends and Family,

Today I am going to talk about what our Families stand for. Think about it for  a minute. What is the center of your family? Before you answer that question, put your Faith, Cooking, Ethnic, or Bank account aside.

What I'm asking is Who you Family really Are, and that is harder than just stamping the Christian label on the top of your page, because sadly many people think of themselves as Christian but don't live it.

Think about what your family members do in their lives. What teaching moments have you recorded in a special book, or bring out at family gatherings, that state in big bold letters, WE LIVE AS....

Most of my life I have believed I am Christian, but after learning how the Coptic Christians have been torchered because of their faith, then beheaded, I'm wondering how strong is my faith and knowledge of God the Father and Jesus Christ. Would I deny my faith if it meant I'd no longer be beaten several times a day or lose my life? Where I am now, well cared for and well over 50, I can absolutely say, "NO."

Because I understand that our life here is just a quick 'heartbeat' in Eternity, that no matter what happens on earth, Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ cleanse us of pain when we come home, and I have an Eternal companion who reminds me daily that I'm what makes his life worth living... I truly believe we will be OK. Our Life Sermons come from deep within and shine throughout our lives. They take us through the 'hard things' in life, or leave us open to disaster.

Whatever the tragedy, ISIS warriors from the training ground 8 miles south of our border deciding to burn their way through America, economic failure, or terrible illness... Whatever it is that comes from left field, would our Family's Life Sermon pull us together or apart?

[BTW, according to Wikipedia,the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria, is the largest Christian Church in Egypt and the Middle East, it was established by St. Mark abt. 42AD. Why do Christian Leaders worry about who is Christian? I'll let my Heavenly Father do the sorting.]

 Let's get back to our Question. What do you and your family stand for? What has motivated them to do what they do? What is the definition of Success in your family?

In a recent email from my big brother he shared with me recently, were quotes and moments that spoke of not the what but the Who Someone Is. The list begins with a grandmother's definition of Success, she said, "Success is when you look back at your life and the memories make you smile."
I'd have to agree with her, that would be true success because I would know that my life is in harmony with The Savior.

Another told of a moment where a father stood with his six children around their dying mother's bed in the hospital. Their mother's last coherent words before she died were, "I feel so loved right now. We should have gotten together like this more often." If this is the Life Sermon of your family, would you/could you do anything to change it?

The last in this email-list was of someone who had been traveling in Kenya and met a refugee from Zimbabwe. He said he hadn't eaten anything in over 3 days. When he was offered a partially eaten sandwich, the man said, "We can share it"

That brings to mind the 'Berlin Candy Man' of WWII, who dropped tons of candy by handkerchief parachutes to children in war torn Europe. Why? Because he saw how how 30 kids reacted when he gave a few of the children a few sticks of gum. Those children who received the gum kept it, but then they passed the foil-paper back amongst the group so all could have a sniff of the peppermint! Could you put their Life Sermon into words?

Of these few examples from life, which ones would be examples of your Family Life Sermon? What would be Your Life Sermon? Our Father's Life Sermon seemed to be Creating a Legacy through Schnee's Grocery, of caring for the town of Mitchell & Providing for their families through Hard Work and Thrift. Mom's Life Sermon seemed to be Seeking Forgiveness (for youthful choices) & showing she'd changed by, Raising My Girls. However, I doubt either of our parents would think of themselves that way, and I wish I had understood how to ask them when they were here.

While you have parents and grandparents to ask and learn from, maybe you should find out what their Life's Sermons are (or write them down for generations to come if you know) and if there is a Family Life Sermon you haven't recognized yet, talk to their neighbors, friends... Don't wait...

Easter Traditions of the Ages

Nearly every American has unique memories about Easter, often as I remember mine, they are filled with thoughts of frilly Easter Dresses and Hats. I remember my little sister dresses in white fluffs of lace, with an occasional yellow bow to go with her bright blonde hair.

We felt so beautiful that Spring not really understanding what Easter celebrations were. Many Christians observed Palm Sunday, the Sunday before Easter, when Jesus returned to Jerusalem surrounded by his followers, riding on a young Ass, over a carpet of Palm leaves.

The Thursday before Easter marked when Jesus and his Disciples partook of The Last Supper, then Good Friday (although I fail to understand how the day of Jesus Christ's Crucifixion could ever be called good)

Finally, Easter Sunday, we would dress in white to testify that He was Risen! This special tradition was reflected in our songs and movies, a looked for expression that marked new life and rebirth.

Slowly but surely the desire to express our feelings of gratitude to The Lord for His Grace and such Love that He would pay for our sins, to become a holiday of plastic eggs hidden under leaves and bushes.

At 16, I remember one Easter Sunday putting together an Easter Egg Hunt for the little kids in our trailer park, because I thought it was sad that we were deprived of even that joy, simply because we were the poorest people on the planet.

Down at the Umatilla River we had a grand time, first hiding eggs then watching little ones running around looking under fallen trees and leaves, as we kept guard that they didn't venture near the river that was running fast with spring melt-off.

Did you know that in Ireland children played a game called egg striking, or Pillie-Winkie? That the egg was a symbol of the rebirth of spring, egg picking, or egg tapping, was a game in English folklore. This game was called many things, the egg fight, egg knocking, egg pacqueing, egg boxing, or egg jarping, was a common game where the contestants would each pick out a boiled egg and they would tap the eggs together at the pointed end to see who was the winner.

in the 1500s there was a springtime dance called the egg dance. the goal was to dance on a floor where eggs had been set out in a pattern, without damaging any of course, which came from the wedding of Margaret of Austria and Philibert of Savoy. This dance became a betrothal dance where a hundred eggs were scattered over a level space and covered with sand. If a couple could dance through the space without breaking an egg they were betrothed, and not even their parents could oppose the marriage. *The American Magazine vol. 39, 1895, p. 390

Arranged marriages were the norm where parents would choose mates for their children from families who shared their same ethnic or religious values, lifestyles, and where the excellent character of the chosen spouse was known. *http://www.vishnusvirtues.com/arranged-marriage/

As you research your family lines you might consider adding these bits of information in your comments to allow your children and others to have a broader understanding of what the lives in other lands were like.

Easter Sunday, Easter Monday and Good Friday were, & still are public holidays in Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden. 800,000 of our early Americans were from these countries because of the lack of land and employment in their homelands. Much of their immigration was in the form of a chain, where established American members of a family would send travel money and instructions to their siblings and cousins in Sweden, and arrange for jobs and land as needed.
*http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swedish_emigration_to_the_United_States

Traditions of all kinds, were a part and parcel of life before immigration, and are still important for the foundational strength of families today. Do you know your ancestors traditions? What are the most important ones you practice today?

Adding Life to Old Photos is Easy!

Last week AncestryInsider.org posted about an interview with FamilySearch's Michael Benson that was aptly called, 'Darned Wonderful Color Images'. It was all about the different colored inks that are invisible when the image being studied is black and white.

 In his blog post he explains how because of the different inks that were sometimes used, important information is lost. If you look closely at the image here you can see where not only was the first half written in light green, but most of the stamps are in light purple! Now look below the officiators name in the bottom right.

Did you notice before who the officiator was? What difference would it make if you couldn't read that small line below?

I wish I could have shown the above image in black and white, but as an example look at this one...

Can you imagine how much nicer that would look with a bit of color?

Well, that got me to thinking... If you are like me, you have dozens of old photos that were taken long before color photos were possible and sadly they look very dead and flat.

I'd come across a delicate photo, just about 2" square of a Great Great Grandmother, but the image was lifeless and the more I thought about how she might have been thinking as she sat unmoving for the 10 min. needed to take this photo. It should be more than black & white!

So I went to Google and asked if there was a free website for coloring photos, and yes there is, and it is called Colorizephoto.com and is quite simple. First you can practice on the photos given, I'm sure you recognize the actors faces. Then, when you have learned how to color within the lines (not leaving any 'make-up' on Newman's color) and how to change the amount of color opacity and hardness (just click on the center dots and arrows) which takes about 15 minutes, you'll be ready to bring your images to life.

Here is the image I had found of Matilda Henrietta Krause; a lovely bride I'm sure, but the black and white photo certainly does not do her justice. I understand that some people like the black and white statement, and for some images the subtle differences in b/w create a statement whether it is of innocence or great age. However, I tend to want emotion to be touched by viewing a photo and that seldom can be done without color.


After a few minutes of tinkering on Colorizephoto.com I had created this...

What an amazing difference a bit of color made. Now she is alive, even vibrant and all it took was a few minutes of my time to bring her to life.

Because it is a very small image it's nearly impossible to see the imperfections, even though I can assure you they are there. To my old eyes she now looks as regal as she must have been in real life, from the golden mirror backdrop to the lilac corsage at her left shoulder.

The only closing comments I would share would to remember, less is more. Don't overdo the colors or you might end up with this...