GRAND Magazine - March/April 2019 - 31

grand living

Build and share your legacy now
BY BOB AND JUDITH WRIGHT

ith spring break on the way, we may
be presented with opportunities to
visit or travel with family. There's no
better time to asses our family connections than
when we're spending time together with loved
ones, building family traditions.
A friend recently told us about the last springtime road trip she took with her father before he
passed away. During the trip he shared anecdotes about growing up she'd never really heard
before. She said it was one of the first times she
got to hear about who her father really was-his
childhood, his experiences as a teenager, and his
life as a young man.
Later she used these experiences to write his
obituary for the newspaper. While she deeply
appreciated this memory of travelling with her
father and sharing rich discussions about his life,
she wished they'd had those conversations earlier. Wouldn't it be wonderful if we could pass on
our stories and our genealogy of family traditions
now, instead of waiting until the twilight? How do
we start building family traditions and strengthening our connections
today?

Get the fields ready to plant

DNA and genetic mapping are a big trend these days, with services like Ancestry and 23andMe promoting kits to map you your
background. These kits may tell you the ethnic history of your
parents and grandparents, your countries of origin, and even your
propensity toward certain genetic diseases- but they can't really
31 GRAND

MARCH APRIL 2019

coming year and thereafter.
As you're thinking of your Spring planting, consider your own past and the genealogy of your
family. How can you start building family traditions
and spending time together exploring who you are
and where you've come from? What would you like
to know about your family members? How do their
personalities, preferences, and experiences play into
your own?

Discover the intentions of
our ancestors

capture the legacy of your genealogy. This is more than DNA,
birthdates, or death dates.
Our family genealogy also includes patterns in relationships
that have been passed down from generation to generation.
What where their relationships like? What did the family go
through? What personality traits did they have? What were their
experiences? What values did they hold?
In the Spring, we start to plant ideas about travel and family
get togethers-but let's also think of whom we want to become
in the new season on your own or together with your family and
loved ones. Think of the seeds you will plant in your life for the

While we can't buy a test tube kit or a cheek swab
to discover the intentions of our ancestors, we can
learn a lot by examining our family history and
relationships with living relatives. As we understand
our genealogy and the choices of our family more
completely, we can create a clearer picture of how
we want our lives to be in the future - what seeds
we want to plant with our children and grandchildren. Not only does this mean looking at pictures
or letters together, but also having those important
meaningful conversations whenever possible. 'What did you like
about X and what has the family kept hidden, and why?' When
faced with a piece of your family history, explore the meaning and
implications-you may even find letters and books where you can
further inquire into the nature of the author.

She had a needy mother and an
abusive father.
Continued on next page

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GRAND Magazine - March/April 2019

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