The value of our work...

Hello all. I'd like to share a short personal anectdote, which I am sure most of you will appreciate.

My grandfather visited us this week; he lives in norther California, we live in Southern California. Basically, I started my research after his visit last summer, when I interviewed him on his family history. It had been a year since I last saw him and had not shared any of my genealogical research because I wanted to share the details with him in person.

I have amassed 250 years of documentation of his direct relatives from Moyahua, Zacatecas. His reaction to my findings was priceless! It was pure joy to see his face light up at the mention of some of his aunts' and uncles' names that he had forgotten; he's 81 after all!

He was also very surprised that many of his ancestors had "mixed" with some of the other families in Moyahua. Mostly because he said he never knew he descended from such-and-such (surname), as there are many residents in Moyahua with such-and-such surname and most certainly his relatives!

He laughed, cried, and I literally imagined my grandfather as he might have been in his prime. A side of him that I had never seen.

Let us not forget our elders and to those of us who are fortunate enough to still have them with us - let us spend as much time as we possibly can with them.

Buenas noches.