Deciphering Handwriting at a Glance Concentrating on trying to decipher old, foreign and/or illegible handwriting in your genealogical documents can be frustrating. We're all familiar with the power of our peripheral vision capturing an image or a piece of information. Sometimes by setting the difficult document to the side and glancing at it with your peripheral vision, you may be able to make out that cryptic writing. Another way to try to read is to turn it upside down. Another perspective might help you see the information in a new way and solve your deciphering dilemma.