Susan and I are looking forward with great anticipation to see and feel the Spirit of Elijah in our hearts and minds and in our home. We wanted to go in the past down to Salt Lake City to the great Genealogy and Family History feast but this gives us a real opportunity to have it right here in our new home. We just moved in about a month or so ago. The home is about 20 years old but is comfortable and very nice for us. We down sized to one story and now we'll be 80 and 82 in a couple of months and moving slower these days, at least I do. I made up a 4 ft dia. genealogy round wheel. Actually, more like a fan wheel chart with a possible around 2000 names on it when full. It's about 12 or 13 generations on it. I've got it about two thirds full and did it about a year or so ago. I have my dad's on one side and mom's on the other side. It was so much fun putting it together. Our ward family history Teacher, Betty Keetch, got me going again; she is such a good teacher. I've heard and learned so much in the last several years. I learn that I have at least 6 direct Mayflower ancestor passengers, three on my dad's side , William Brewster, wife Mary, and Isaac Allerton who married Brewster's daughter Fear, who came later. And on my mom's side, John Howland, who later married Elizabeth Tilley, and at least one of her parents, Father Tilley. And about John Howland's near death after being swept overboard in a raging storm in the Atlantic and of his miraculous rescue. You can't make these stories up, they are so incredible. We got a book about him and sent one to each one of our children and family for Christmas a year ago. No one in my family knew about them, that I knew of. Also, I found out that I have a black fellow on my mom's side. One of my Granddaughter's told me about having about a percentage of black in our line. What, I had no idea. So I started looking into my mother's side, and sure enough I ran into a person, who lived in Virginia, I believe. He was pulled into court, one day and wanted to know how come you being a mulatto have 9 whites in your0 home. I think this was back in the 1700's. He paid taxes, and later, his wife received money from the government, since he was a war veteran. This ancestor was about seven generations back. And I found out that some of my people came early into Jamestowm,. One ancestor was born about 1608 in that area, if what I read is true and of somehow he survived the great massacre by the indians one year. And I found out about on my father's side of two Mochacan Indian Princeses. And about the Huguenots in my family and many, many more. It's like a feast at the King's table. I could go on and on but somehow I must soon stop. I knew very, very little about these things until about two or three years ago; and Sister Keetch got me going again. And one of my granddaughter who lives in Texas told me about some of my Black History. And I learned of my Kentucky and Tennessee families by study and learning more about computers. And of my big families from New England. And those from England, Ireland, Scotland, Denmark, The Netherlands, France and Germany and more I'm fairly sure. I've got some wonderful stories on two trips to Caldwell Co. Kentucky. One in Northwest Kentucky where we finally found a guide who took us right to my great great grandmother's grave. Her stone was in a small cemetery up past a tobacco drying shed and up in a soybean field in his 4x4 truck. We found her stone tipped over, as he said it would be. He said he was going back later to set it up straight. We took some pictures, and thanked him for everything and bfor setting the stone correctly. Her name is Tennessee Alabama Hartless. (They called her Tinsy Ala Heartless). I 'd say a very unusual name. We love her dearly and hope to meet her some day as well as all my other ancestors. When we got home we sent him a small package of Idaho Spuds and a signed autographed Book of Mormon. He wrote back and thanked us for the package. (And our guide got permission to go up to the little cemetery.) Thank you for listening to my stories. And I've got many more like them.. They are almost like candy, almost like sacred candy. These stories are sacred to me and my wife Susan. I must confess, thinking back, many have helped me find my ancesters, my dear wife, my mother who like to do genealogy, others in my various wards over the years, Sunday School Teacher's, and cousins who were doing it mostly on mother's side and my wife's sister Eileen. She took us to Nantucket Island. Many of her's, and of course my wife's direct ancestors lived on Nantucket Island. What a fun trip, We were in Boston for a son's graduation and she flew to be there with us and she put us up in the Boston Common's, how nice can it get. Thanks Dayton and Eileeen! Bye the way, many, probaby thousands, and probably millions have ancestral stories just like mine, hope you get going. If you love your ancestors like I do mine you will be truly amazed of meeting you ancestors this way. Life just cannot get better. Hope we'll all get going and help our ancestors do for them what they can not do for themselves. We promised.to do this up in Heaven before we came here!. We propised!! And of course the Holy Ghost is a wonderful teacher. And testifies of truth and of our SaviorJesus Christ. Jesus Christ truly is our Heavenly Father's Son in the Flesh. Heavenly Father has been kind to us and has given us everything, Even our very lives, and helped us greatly! May we all be blessed in doing this very important work! Thanks for reading. ps. If you found any errors please let me know , we'll try and correct it. Thanks again !
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