Monday, June 01, 2009

A Sunny Afternoon and A Discovery

We had a good weekend around the yellow house. We really didn’t do anything big, but it was nice to just have a slow, easy weekend. It was a time to just soak up the brilliant sunshine that we’ve been having over the weekend. It’s still sunny today…hooray! (smile) It’s hard to keep my mind on anything because I just want to be outside all the time. Yeah, I’m crazed right now. LOL.

Anyway, on Saturday, we went into town to do an errand and then had some KFC. It was good since we don’t have it very often. It made me think of summer days back home. Brit Boy remarked that everything looks happier and more laid back when the sun shines. We are so alike. So we finished up our eats and then headed home.

We took the scenic route home back to our more rural area and then we kept going a bit. The thought of Wiltshire in the sunshine was just too good to pass up, so we drove a bit past home, further into the country. It was absolutely gorgeous! Wow! With the sun shining, everything was just so much more green and beautiful. The rolling hills with livestock dotting the scene, and little farmhouses scattered along the way, made for a postcard ready picture.

Then it was time to turn around and head back home. Brit Boy wanted to watch a big football/soccer match. But it was fine…I had enough of that natural beauty already stored away in my brain. (smile)

While Brit Boy was watching his match, I took out my laptop and started something I’ve been meaning to start working on. You see, I’m very interested in genealogy. I always have been. I’ve always loved wondering about the people who came before me. In the future, I’d love to write a full history of my family on both sides based on the family trees I’ve done in the past. So my bit of research Saturday was a step along that path. I want to fill in some cracks and pull it all together.

I thought that I’d start with my dad, who passed away when I was a child. My dad was several years older than my mom and I came late in his life. So he lived a lot of his life before I was born. Lately I’ve been very intrigued to find out more about the time he spent in the Army during World War II. I very often wish that I had been a bit older when he passed away, so that I could’ve asked him more about this time in his life. But I was a kid who was playing with her Barbie, so I didn’t think to ask very much. (smile) So now I’m going to put my love of research to good use and find out what I can on my own.

I got my first find pretty quickly. I did a search in the National Archives and found his military service during World War II listed there. It was a cool moment. I got this tingle down my spine seeing his name there with the details that let me know it was him. It was like I was reaching through history and touching my dad’s hand. What a wonderful feeling. (smile)

So now, I’m going to continue since I’ve finally started on this journey. I didn’t get to know my dad for very long, so in a way I’m reacquainting myself with him after all this time. I hope to weave together the story of him, my mom, and all those who came before me. Looking back keeps me grounded and I love it sometimes. In the meantime, I'm going to live a life in the now and hope that I have something of my own to add in the end. (smile)

12 comments:

Mike Golch said...

It is great to find out thing about our Dad's service.Mine did not talk much about his service as well. He had a scrapbook with pictures of the time he spent in Japan after the war.when he passed away Mom gave it to me.

Lidian said...

I love genealogy for exactly the same reasons...It is an amazing pursuit and I am so happy for you! :)

Alison said...

I love genealogy, it's good to hear you made such great discoveries already :)

Roz said...

It's wonderful that you found your Dad's service record. I hope that you have many more interesting finds during your research.

Anonymous said...

I'm interested in genealogy as well, it's just a little further down my interest list, so I haven't done much with it.
This is a really cute blog. I like your writing style and I'm intrigued with expats, so I'll be back soon!

heidi said...

How interesting and cool that you found your dad's information! I also find it inspiring and intriguing to learn about where we came from.

jacqueline said...

Hello Dori,

It seems as if you're off to a great start on your fascinating and sacred journey. :-)

For me, it often feels as if I'm treading on Holy Ground when I come across a relative's name whom I've heard about most of my life. To see their name printed someplace else gives so much more credence to their spirit, which I believe still remains. I can't help but ponder what they may have been like and the struggles they may have endured, day to day.

Enjoy the journey. :-)

Dori said...

Mike,
Yeah, my dad has some photos in a scrapbook too about his time abroad. I've been sifting through it all. I'll bet that your dad's scrapbook is great.

Lidian,
Thanks for the good wishes. It definitely is a fun pursuit. I love peeking into the past to see what's there :)

Alison,
Yeah, it's cool to get a good find so soon :)

Roz,
It was kind of unexpected. I thought it would be harder. Thanks for wishing me well :)

Resplendentlife,
Yeah, I've been putting it off and then I finally took the plunge with my research, so I know what you mean. I'm so glad you like my blog. I'll have to visit you too. Thanks for visiting me :)

Heidi,
Yeah, I thought that I would have a harder time with it. I still have more digging to do, but it was a good first find. You're so right...finding out who we come from is so interesting :)

Jacqueline,
I love how you put that..."sacred", that's how I feel when I'm doing things like this. It's like tuning into something deep within. And you're right, seeing his name there in the archives just sent tingles down my spine. It made me see that we all are eventually part of the history of this planet in the end. It is powerful stuff :)

j said...

It's great that so much stuff is online now -- I hope yo have a fun time finding out more about your Dad and other family members.

And I'm glad that things are beautiful in your part of the world right now.

The Silver Age Sara said...

Genealogy is fascinating and I'll be interested to hear about your findings. I'm so glad you are having beautiful weather and are able to be outside enjoying it.

AndreaLeigh said...

just wanted to stop by and welcome you to SITS. It is a great way to network and make some new friends!

Windmill said...

Hi!

I have left Blog Awards for you to collect at:

http://dfoolonthehill.com/?p=3530

Cheers!