Dear "fellow" rockers, Your feelings are certainly understandable and sometimes shared. But, I'm convinced there is another, and exciting, side to the search for ancestors. A couple of years ago some folks were talking about the concept of "serendipity". The genealogical interpretation of this was that "OUR ANCESTORS WANT TO BE FOUND". Since then I have printed off (but not saved to a disk) quite a few stories of people who were led, in a variety of ways, to find their ancestors. I have no way of sharing the specific stories with you, but I remember a few of the events, such as: 1. A lady and her husband were exploring the homeland of their ancestors and the woman had a weird feeling that they should turn down a specific road. A bit later, the feeling came back that they should turn down another road. Very shortly, they came to a cemetery. Guess what! They found gravestones for several lost relatives. 2. Another person was doing research in a library and was sitting near some book shelves, thumbing through books. She happened to glance down at a bottom shelf and saw a single book there. She picked it up and laid it on the table. As she was glancing though it, It fell open to a page that had quite a bit of information about her ancestors. 2. More recently, a man was standing at the gravestone of a relative and asked out loud, "Where is "John Smith"? Almost instantly the name of a church popped in his head, one he had never hear of. After talking to others, he found the small, out of the way, church and the gravestone of the relative he was looking for. Like I said, there a many such stories in the genealogy newsletters that I get on the Internet. So now, when I go places, I know my relatives want to be found so I look and hope. So far, I haven't found any that way, <G>, but I haven't been on any trips for quite some time. Keep the faith! Jim Hodges = = = = = = = = = = 19 May 2003 From: Cathe125@aol.com Subject: [RC-ROOTS] Play hard to find? OK......Shall we all play hard to find.....as our Ancestors sure seem to (LOVE) playing? Should we leave the next Census with no information....like dodge them when we see them coming....not answer the questionnaire? In about 100 years....we know they will be like "US" desperately searching for any remnants they may find..........Leave them with the insatiable desire to find their roots and desperately seeking which Susan? Ha! Susan, Suzanne, Suesan, etc.!! Just venting! Thanks, Fellow desperate searchers :O) = = = = = = = = = = 19 May 2003 From: "Joyce Spike" <joycespike@geneseo.net> Hi , know how you feel . Some times it helps to " VENT " prevents a heart attack ,ulcers etc . Hope it helped you . Happy Hunting . Joyce in ILLinois = = = = = = = = = 19 May 2003 From: "Nancy Coombs" <nrcoombs@pivot.net> Good venting! My husband gets it all at my house, and it sure is frustrating!! Feel better?! Nancy = = = = = = = = = = 19 May 2003 From: "Sharon Workman" <workman@dreamscape.com> I agree that our ancestors play dirty sometimes. I finally afte r years of hunting nailed the family of my great grandmother. Her name was Nettie Walker, but I finally found her in the 1870 census as Nettie Sperry. Her father died in 1864 in a Confederate prison camp. Her mother remarried to a man named Adelbert Sperry, and the children were listed under that surname. Now, I ask you. Was that fair? Sharon