Joy wrote:Governor [not sure what that title refers to] Edward Fuller of the Mayflower is my 10th great-grandfather, lucky him.
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He was a signatory to the Mayflower Compact.
My cousin told me he has spent forty years documenting our ancestry. Better him than me.
![Confused :?](./images/smilies/icon_e_confused.gif)
Today, with the internet, most of us are cheaters compared with the real work some put into keeping and searching records.
For instance, this recent connection came to me in email from Family Search.
i thought, “no, it can’t be.” then, i viewed the relationship path (names+dates) going back,
they even determined “1st Cousins, 11 times removed,”
this doesn’t represent much effort on my part!
But it gives me a lot to think about.
For many years i’ve thought about “what makes people tick,” and, how messages are passed down over generations. We’re created by God, unique creations, AND, we are influenced in many ways, with thousands of messages coming to us, probably beginning before we’re born.
Families pass down information (i think of it as passing batons in relay races) batons are passed, but who+where+why may not be remembered. But the messages keep going.
(i think) we are impacted by ‘way more than we realize.
So, i enjoy dabbling in these old records. Altho i don’t feel my brain is able to comprehend much of the results. It does spark the imagination. It makes history seem less remote.
i’m able to tell my family, “you came from somewhere,” “all these people before us valued Jesus Christ and sacrificed for Him.” in all these various ways.
so many seem to believe life began when they were born, or, often, maybe when they turned 16, or so. everything is of the moment, and revolves around self. this is a pretty sad way to live, imho.
when humans are born, they are 100% self-centered, this is necessary and by God’s design.
but, the design is that we are to grow beyond that over our lifetimes. (i think) the “me” culture interferes with human emotional development. i also think tiny families contribute to the me culture.
my immediate family is pretty tiny.
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not by my plan or desire.
i hope helping them recognize a bigger picture helps them with perspective. the world is not helping with perspective. the world endorses+encourages self-centeredness.
In the past, genealogies were misused for division and divisive purposes. It’s not always harmless.
Lots of people have no interest at all. i think genealogies have usefulness. i’m thankful for the records that were kept over time, for various reasons. and for all the work a lot of people have donated, much of it volunteered, for the greater good.
so much work of all types is done by anonymous people who just do what they can never seeking notoriety. these are the people who “make the world go round,” while never named in any headline. would there be a world without “worker bees?” i have my doubts.
one thing i’ve just learned about the Mayflower is, only about half on board were Pilgrims.
they didn’t want to travel with strangers and ruffians, but it turned out that way. they were forced to live in close quarters together, in rough conditions on an old, creaky ship!
the Mayflower Compact was written in attempt to “set some ground rules” to help them all, believers+scoundrels, survive on land. the number of Mayflower Pilgrims was small. there were so many ways they could have all been lost and long forgotten. it’s hard to imagine how they even decided to give it a try. on that rickety old ship.
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