It was once that families never traveled far from home. You could find many generations of a family living in the same town. You don't see that lifestyle very much any longer. Employment and schooling have produced families that are spread far and wide. Even though it is less difficult to stay in touch these days, we still lose out on personal contact. Because of the losa of close contact, we don't really get to know our family the way we used to.
The communication we have with our family that lives far away is similar to how we know our ancestors. We are aware of them, where they live and what their job is. But is there really a link?
Keeping a strong relationship to family, whether far away by distance or our long ago ancestors, we can have a feeling of belonging. Personal tales and family experiences are invaluable to creating that connection. It is up to us to make sure that these family ties are strong and stay strong, even with our ancestors.
Staying in touch with our family that live far-off is both easier and difficult than ever before. In our day we are blessed to have so many ways to stay in touch with distant family. Email and great telephone service gives us the ability to make contact with almost anyone anywhere. It is even simpler for us to visit our extended family. People in years past might have never got the opportunity to see their family that moved even a few hundred miles away because of the slow methods of transportation available to them. We have the ability to cover large distances quickly because of the transportation choices we have today. Today we lead such busy lifes that we can't seem to squeeze in an extra moment for family visits.
You can stay in touch with family without going for extended visits. It may take a little time, but when you really think about it family is worth the effort. The following ideas can not only help you stay in touch with today's family, it can help develop a personal record for your future posterity. We want to leave a great heritage for those who will wonder about us in the future.
Start a circle journal. Get a group of family members and start a circle journal to circulate through the group. Each person will get the journal for a week or so. Record information about your family, things you have been doing and what your kids are involved in. When the time period is up, simply mail the journal to the next person and have them do the same thing. Plan the journal so everyone gets the journal about every month to six weeks. It is fun to read about everyone else when the journal returns to you, then it is time to start over again and write more. At the end of each year make a copy for everyone in the group and start with a fresh journal for the new year. Because you are constantly in contact, you will learn more about each family than you would from an end of the year letter.
One of the idealthings about a circle journal is you are creating a history of your daily life for your descendants. It is natural for us to record all the major events in our lives, but we tend to ignore the beauty of every day life. However, when you read back through your family record it is the personal, every day stories that mean the most. Everyday events tend to humanize families and make them someone we can relate to.
Start a family blog. Blogging is a terrific way to stay in touch and share stories. Your blog doesn't need to be open to the world, you can make a private blog that is only available to those you invite. Blogging is a great way to share pictures, funny life memories, and major events with your family and friends.
Create a digital scrapbook. When you create a scrapwook digitally, you can make a family record without mess or much expense. The great thing about digital scrapbooking is you can share your pages with family far and wide by posting them on the web. You can also have your scrapbook professionally printed and bound and give it as gifts.
There are lots of terrific ways to keep a record of your life. We get thrilledwhen we come acrosssomething that ties us to our ancestors, and your record with make that kind of pleasurein your posterity as well. A record of family helps us to remember where we have been and guides us to where we are going. Make sure your family record has you in it!
Author Resource:-
Piper is a freelance writer who spends time working on family history She loves nature, good movies and spending time with her family. Piper enjoys finding tales about her ancestors and scanning photos she has collected.
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