Where to Next?

My writing break from Cousins is making it hard to figure out where to begin again. I enjoyed prewriting several posts which were published while I was gone on my trip.  I was able to anticipate my upcoming adventure as well as cover my days away. It was a good plan. We had been assured of Wifi connections in all the hotels across Sicily and Southern Italy. Well, sometimes it worked and sometimes it didn't. Publishing a blog would have been a nightmare. The trip was fantastic, and I could go on and on about it. However, this is not a travel blog, but a family history/genealogy blog. Give me some time, and I will undoubtedly figure out a way to weave the trip into my blog.

As I stated before, upon arrival in Rome, I received the sad news of my mother-in-law's death. She had been doing genealogy years ago and was a great resource for me. I had even written about this fact in the post Another Limb.

So, the funeral is over. The siblings and families have departed. Now what? I thought about sharing her obituary. I thought about writing about her, but this loss has left me genealogically unenthused.

Then, I received word that the mother of my cousin's husband passed away. So, it is off to another funeral.  This year of 2015 has taken its toll. I have written about some, but there are others that I have not mentioned on my blog like my best friend's 50 year old daughter or my eighth grade teacher as well as a few local residents who I have known all my life. It has just been too many. However, maybe this is one of the stages of life that as a younger person its existence never crosses your mind. It is not a welcome experience, but one that gets your attention again and shakes you up. Once again you vow: I will enjoy today. Tomorrow many not come my way.

As family historian, I deal with those birthdate, death dates, and as much of a life as I can discover in what we call the dash. Death dates are easier when they are so many years ago not yesterday or last week, or last month or in the year 2015.

And I will post my mother-in-law's the obituary, but not today. Today I want to share a verse shared on Facebook by a special cousin.  It was from www.starbrightangels.org.


A limb has fallen from the family tree.
I keep hearing a voice that says, "Grieve not for me
Remember the best times, the laughter, the song.
The good life I lived while I was strong.
Continue my heritage, I am counting on you.
Keep smiling and surely the sun will shine through.
My mind is at ease, my soul is at rest.
Remembering all, how I truly was blessed.
Continue traditions, no matter how small.
Go on with your life, don't worry about falls.
I miss you all dearly, so keep up your chin.
Until the day comes we're together again."