The 1940s: My Link to the Past

You might remember this post about Family Search indexing. Well, in 19 short days, on April 2, the 1940 U.S. Federal Census will be released to the public. I know I will be helping with indexing that census. Who wants to join me? It would make a great project for anyone who shares a love of service and history.

I consider the 1940s my real link to the past. Though I wasn't born yet, my parents were born during that decade. My grandparents were young newlyweds, starting their families, filled with the hope of youth. The events of the 1940s helped shape my grandparents (and parents) into the people they became. Reading the 1940 census will allow me to see my grandparents not as the older adults they have been my entire life, but as young adults. The 1940 census will allow me to figuratively read the beginning of a book--a book with fleshed-out, familiar and beloved ending chapters, but not-as-familiar earlier chapters. I look forward to noticing the themes and foreshadowing.

Thankful thought: Thanks for photos, censuses, and other documents that help us more deeply understand and appreciate our ancestors.

Comments

Ten Things of Thankful: Autumn Edition

It's autumn time, one of my favorite times of year. I just couldn't leave this weekend as a one-post weekend.

Ten Things of Thankful: Last Two Weeks

Grand Prismatic Spring in Yellowstone National Park, as viewed from an overlook I apologize for not commenting on your blog posts this past week; John and I took a vacation to Yellowstone National Park, leaving behind our computers and, to a large extent, cell phone service. We escaped the outside world and just spent time in nature. Though we have friends near Yellowstone (who we love to visit) we made this trip just about us, so please forgive us if we were nearby and didn't stop by. The crowds were minimal (though we did mask up whenever we passed someone on the trails) and we spent our days hiking, taking photos, and watching geysers erupt. Today, we are back home and back to work, and, in the case of my computer, back to old shenanigans like not letting me import my photos. (I was able to add the above photo by using blogger on my phone, but that isn't my preferred method.) I want to write about Yellowstone and have photos I want to share, but will leave that for another

Monday Mentions: Equate Crutches

Have you ever needed crutches? I hadn't, until a week ago. I'm pretty sure I strained a muscle while running a half-marathon. (That sounds kind of cool, doesn't it? I'm not actually that cool; the last time I strained a muscle it was from carrying too many shopping bags at once.) In any case, I found myself in need of some crutches. I sent my husband to the store to get some. Photo: A pair of crutches leans against a wall Not that crutches are all that complex, but because I hadn't used any before, I wondered if I could figure out how to adjust them to fit me properly. I shouldn't have worried. John came home from Walmart with their generic store brand of crutches, complete with instructions. First, I needed to take out a long bolt that went through the hand grip. Then I needed to find my height range, push down two metal pieces, and slide the crutches until the little metal pieces came up in the hole near my height range. (Having two people for this

Thankful Me

Search This Blog