Genealogy – Isn’t that a waste of time?

The other day, a friend told me that he was sick of hearing about genealogy, especially the part where people found out they were related to the rich and famous. Ironically, I can understand how he felt. I still remember when I was a little boy and my grandfather would show me yellow pictures of people with their shirts and dresses buttoned up to their chins. No one in the photos was smiling either. They looked miserable. I would just roll my ten year old eyes.

Then my grandfather would say, “this is your great-great-grandfather and your grandmother.” Each image had a story, and each story seemed duller than the last. The worst part was when we would visit old cemeteries and my grandfather would stop at each stone of each ancestor buried there and tell me all about that person.

This made no sense to me. I found it boring and monotonous, and the whole thing wore me out. I couldn’t for the life of me understand how ancestors who were dead could be interesting to anyone. And that was the case, pretty much, until 2001. That was the year that Congress passed Senator Orrin Hatch’s resolution. The resolution specified October as National Family History Month, and suddenly genealogy was all the rage.

Soon there seemed to be a new awareness of the influence of genes and their effect on hereditary diseases, which morphed into the use of DNA to trace ancestry.

In 2004, the British television program, Who do you think you are? premiered on the BBC, with documentary episodes of celebrities discovering their ancestral roots. The show was adapted by Australia, Canada, Denmark, the Netherlands, Ireland, Israel, Norway, South Africa, Sweden, and, in 2010, the United States.

No one really knows how many people are actively researching their ancestry today. How could they? There is no way to measure the exact number of people who visit libraries, archives and cemeteries, consult online genealogy sites, let alone Google their ancestors. However, it is clear that genealogy is one of the most popular hobbies among Americans.

What do these people see when traversing cemeteries or scouring damp record repositories for scraps of information about ancestors who have been dead for more than a century? In reality, they see themselves. Ancestry is popular because it deals with the most precious subject of all: yourself. The ego wants to know everything about his own identity. He is constantly asking himself questions.

• Who I am?
• What does my last name mean?
• What traits have I inherited?
• Am I from royalty?
• I have always heard that I am part Native American. That’s right?
• If my ancestors were slaves, what part of Africa were they from?
• Are there any diseases that I am susceptible to due to my genetic history?

These are the kinds of questions that bombard the minds of ancestor seekers, filling them with an overwhelming need to search for the answers.

However, many people are hesitant to start researching their family trees due to genealogy’s reputation for being difficult, not to mention a bit stuffy and boring. Sometimes these feelings of intimidation can be overcome by viewing genealogy as a game or hobby, rather than something you have to accomplish. See it as something that can be experimented with, little by little.

Gradually, the genealogical detective in you will begin to take over. You’ll start looking for facts about your immediate family and soon you won’t be able to resist telling your other relatives what you’ve found. In turn, that can motivate them to share their own family stories with you. Before you know it, the whole process of searching for ancestors will become addictive, but one that provides great satisfaction.

One of the first areas of satisfaction concerns your health. Indeed, her doctor has asked her questions about her mother’s and her father’s medical history. That’s because diseases can be passed down from generation to generation through heredity. Imagine the advantage of knowing the health problems of your historical relatives and how having this information can allow you and your children to take preventive measures against any hereditary disease.

Suppose you discover that your grandparents suffered from high blood pressure. This knowledge may allow you to avoid this disease through a healthier diet and more exercise. Plus, you can make sure your kids do the same.

If you discover that you have probably inherited a susceptibility to certain diseases, such as drug or alcohol addiction, then you can make smart lifestyle choices. Instead of keeping this type of information to yourself, you can tell family members about these family health history trends so they and your children know about it, too.

Of course, not all the ancestral information you discover will be crucial. Some of them will be just fascinating. You can find out where your family comes from at the beginning and what your last name really means. You can find out if any of your family members have ever received a coat of arms and see what it looks like.

Researching your family tree can give you insight into the family heirlooms you own, adding new layers to your meaning. You may discover a famous ancestor or an infamous scoundrel in your past. You are sure to learn about family burial sites, which may become interesting locations for a future family vacation. No doubt you and your children will become experts in using the Internet and the library for research.

The time you spend on genealogy will not be wasted, but invested. Time spent researching your own ancestry will reveal information that will help you and your family stay well and take pride in your heritage.