I wrote this last night for someone on another list who asked why we do genealogy. I thought others might like to read it. Whispers in the Wind What twist of fate has brought me to the person I am today? Was it the ocean voyage that brought my family here, Fraught with danger, death, fear, And the fervent hope that everything would be OK? Or was it the bountiful sight of this new land that to them made everything seem so clear. Several people in my families past gave up the safety and comfort of home and family for a chance at a new life, free of persecution and the constant struggle for food in a poor and destitute land.  They gave me a chance to grow in this new place they call America.  They gave me a chance to stand up for my freedoms without the fear of oppression.  It is not just our right to study our family tree, it is our duty to remember those that formed this land, as a child forms a ball from clay.  That's right, DUTY!  To forge ahead in life and not remember the price paid by those that have gone before would be a crime against humanity.  Not just in this country, but the mother country as well.  It doesn't matter if you are red, white, black or yellow.  We are all of the same breed, one we call man kind, and we all need to be remembered. So the next time you see and old, beaten down cemetery, stop, look, and listen to the voices riding the wind of those that have gone before.  Take a moment, with your eye's closed, and you just might hear a childs laughter long forgotten, or the soft gentle tones of ones whisper of love to another.  Then record the cemetery, and share it!  These people deserve to be remembered if only on paper.  The next time you go into a used book store and find and old family Bible, copy the family information out and pass it on.   Without the Genealogists research and records, the past would slowly become only whispers in the wind. Renee Louse Waring  -  Aug. 5, 2002 List Administrator for: http://www.smartgroups.com/groups/ICM-WGW    http://www.smartgroups.com/groups/WaringFamily GEN-STORIES@rootsweb.com Subscribe to the ICM List at this address: <A HREF="mailto:ICM-WGW-subscribe@yahoogroups.com">ICM-WGW-subscribe@smartgroups.com Subscribe to the Waring List at this address: WaringFamily-subscribe@smartgroups.com</A>