OHCOLUMB-L Archives

From: "Cathy Raber" <>
Subject: FW: [C-M] Fw: Something To Pass The Time (Genealogy reference)
Date: Sun, 2 Jan 2005 16:11:05 -0500

This is very interesting, to me, & thought the list might
think so too! Cathy
Cathy & Don Raber



> [Original Message]
> From: Thomas Crane <>
> To: <>
> Date: 12/14/2004 1:07:23 AM
> Subject: [C-M] Fw: Something To Pass The Time
>
>
>
>
> Greetings Fellow Listers,
>
> Since you all seem to be such a loving and understanding group of people,
I thought that I would forward a message that I sent to another person on
another list. The subject matter had been old time radio and the various
programs that, as children, we all listened to. If anything, I would just
like to evoke some emotional understanding, which you all no doubt have as
you conduct your own research, towards the genealogical process that we all
enjoy.
>
> Best wishes,
>
> Tom Crane
>
>
>
> Don, I do believe in everything that you say. If you do not mind, I wish
to elaborate a bit on what you did say about the creative process and
imagination and especially as it applies to genealogy.
>
> As one delves into the genealogical process, one has to have an
imaginative mind otherwise, it becomes nothing more than fitting together
of pieces in a puzzle. In terms of roots or genealogy, a pattern appears
to develop in the thinking of a person who indulges in such endeavors as
they are not only able to become involved in the past but rather they begin
to understand the placement of one's own ancestors in the context of the
conditions under which they once lived.
>
> As far as I am concerned, the movie, "Somewhere In Time," was not only a
love story that took place over time, but an exercise in the genealogical
process. Although the character that was played by Christopher Reeve
appeared to travel back in time in order to meet the beautiful Jane
Seymour, he did, in reality, engage in the genealogical process in order to
place himself in that time warp. In order to accomplish this task, he had
to know or understand what life might have been like in that era of the
past. He did not simply recreate the past, rather, he lived it.
>
> When one stands before the burial place of some long forgotten ancestor
and reads the inscription written on a tombstone, does one merely copy the
time and place or does one conjure up the image of the person who might
have been? Remember, it will not be long before the person who gazes down
upon that grave will someday occupy a similar resting place and for all of
eternity. What memories of the past will that person who occupies that
grave wish to convey to someone in the future other than the inscription
that is written on his or her tomb?
>
> Picture a child hiding in a bomb shelter beneath the ground seeking
shelter from the bombs that are not only destroying his home, but his
country as well. His only contact with the outside world comes in the form
of a radio program beamed across the ocean from a place where children are
safely tucked in a nice warm bed. What memories does that radio program
evoke from the past in that person's mind and even more importantly, will
someone from the future even be able to understand? Will some genealogist
simply record his name on a chart along side of others or will they attempt
to know the child that once was and the "shadows"of his past? (* Here I
made reference to "The Shadow" radio program which someone had listened to
during the Battle of Britain in the Second World War).
>
> Another person wrote on this website that they lived in the country where
no electricity was available, hence, they did not have the pleasure of
listening to a childhood radio program. In effect, that person asked if he
might have been deprived of that pleasure while others conveyed great
delight in re-creating or discussing radio programs from the past. Might
we then might ask some Amish child if he felt deprived because he lived
where only the rudiments of modern day society exist. His father plows the
ground with horses in a fashion that his Amish ancestors did hundreds of
years ago. To delve into genealogy one must have the imagination to try to
understand what it is that an Amish person experiences as he looks and
prays to his God while, at the same time, relinquishing all of the outside
distractions that could possibly diminish his subservience to his Creator.
>
> Henry Z. Jones, Jr. has written a rather enlightening book that has to do
with the imaginative or psychic process in genealogy. The title of his
book is, "More Psychic Roots" and is sub-titled, "Further Adventures in
Serendipity & Intuition in Genealogy." Mr. Jones has given me the honor
and pleasure of his having quoted from my own book as to some of the
experiences that I had in searching for my own family's past. While my
book is posted on the WWW for all to read, "Free Of Charge," I will,
never-the-less withhold its title only to say that it can be researched by
merely entering my name; that is, Thomas J. Crane. I mention this to you
because I do believe whole-hardly that there is dimension beyond that which
exists within our everyday lives. By using one's imagination, because it
is through this process that the mind begins to explore avenues that others
might not even know exist, one can slip the bounds limit us.
>
> In closing, I am reminded of a television program that was once popular
many years ago. The name of the program was, "Dragnet," and the character
of Sergeant Friday was played by Jack Webb. One of the most famous lines
that came from that program was, "Just the facts, Mam; just the facts."
This leads me to ask, will we simply employ Officer Friday's methodology in
the recording of genealogical information or will we seek to know and to
understand the person whose name that we are recording?
>
> Best wishes to All,
>
> Tom Crane
>
>
>
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• FW: [C-M] Fw: Something To Pass The Time (Genealogy reference) by "Cathy Raber" <>