Beatitudes of a Family Genealogist by Wilma Mauk

“Beatitudes of a Family Genealogist”
Wilma Mauk
(Prairieland Pioneer Genealogical Society, Summer 1995 edition)

Blessed are the great-grandfathers, who saved embarkation and citizenship papers, for they tell WHEN they came.

Blessed are the great-grandmothers, who hoarded newspaper clippings and old letters, for they tell the STORY of their time.

Blessed are the grandfathers, who filed every legal document, for these provide the PROOF.

Blessed are the grandmothers, who preserved family Bibles and diaries, for these are our HERITAGE.

Blessed are fathers, who elect officials that answer letters of inquiry, for--to some--the ONLY LINK to the past.

Blessed are mothers, who relate family TRADITIONS and LEGENDS to the family, for one of her children will surely remember.

Blessed are relatives, who fill in family sheets with extra data, for to them we owe our FAMILY HISTORY.

Blessed is any family, whose members strive for the PRESERVATION of RECORDS, for this is a labor of love.

Blessed are the children who will never say, "Grandma, you told that old story twice today."