Ancestors and the Holidays

Holiday time: it is a great time to be with family, friends or alone with your thoughts.  For most of us it is a hustle and bustle time of year and doing something “extra” might just put a person over the edge of sensibility!  So for me to suggest that this is a good time to do something involving genealogy might seem a little different.  In reality it is not, because holidays are the time in which people naturally gravitate towards remembrances.  So, if you are inclined, here are a few ideas that you might like:

1. Prepare an old recipe and talk about which family member would have made it and who made it the best.  A man giving a talk spoke about when he was a young person he noticed that his mother always cut off the hind area of the turkey.  He asked his mother about this to which she replied, “I don’t know.  I do it because my mother did it.  Go asked her”.  He did this and his grandmother answered in the same way and said, “Go asked your great-grandmother”.  He again did this and his great-grandmother answered, “Well.. you know… I could never get that big turkey to fit into the pan. So, I cut the back end and it fit in just perfectly!”
2. Write down or video someone telling an old family story.  Each person in the family could write about an event that occurred and how they remember it.  My father was a great story teller and often spoke about his days in the Navy during the end of WWII.  Members of the family would be spell bound as he recanted his adventures.  Unfortunately out of six children my parents sired none thought to document these events.  I hope that maybe you can be wiser. 
3. Visit a cemetery where ancestors are buried and clean the burial site and the headstone.  Take a rubbing or picture of the memorial and place it on www.findagrave or another such website. Visit various websites before you to learn how to clean the headstone so that no damage is done and to bring the proper equipment.   
4. Take a new family photo or look through old family photos or videos.  The older ones are especially delightful. My family loves to point out how I have never taken a good photograph or the movie that shows my sister bumping into something and nearly knocking herself out!
5. Create a family display focusing on individuals from long ago that have been researched or a member who has recently passed.  Use pictures and items that belonged to the person.  Kids will be curious and it will spur conversations.
6. The family can write and perform a skit about a family event that transpired.
7. Plan an ancestor birthday party on their special day and show pictures, play games or eat foods that they liked. Get a birthday cake. Sing happy birthday and blow out some candles!
8. Watch a movie from your ancestor’s era or about the era they lived in. 
9. If your ancestor enjoyed helping others, plan a day of service that family members or you can be involved in.  It can be something very simple or elaborate.  I spoke with a woman who took her family during the Christmas season and brought hot cocoa to various Salvation Army Bell Ringers in her area.  It was a very chilly day and much appreciated by the recipients.  The act was so simple! 

What ever you choose to do have a blessed and happy day!