| For most people, digging into the past doesn't | | | | Although this kind of research may include tough |
| seem like an entirely positive prospect - who | | | | encounters with misplaced or inadequate |
| knows what kind of skeletons one ends up finding | | | | documentation, paper trails that lead to dead ends |
| in that closet, but when applied to the practice of | | | | and a lot of trips to the library, the triumph one |
| Genealogy, the phrase "digging into the past" | | | | feels at the success of being able to trace kinship |
| takes on a whole new meaning - one that is | | | | through the veins of history definitely trumps any |
| positive, at times surprising, but more often than | | | | hardships one may encounter during this |
| not rewarding experience. | | | | experience. |
| Family Genealogy is all about looking back at the | | | | Tracing your roots back into the distant and |
| past and tracing your family's lineage and history | | | | not-so-distant past may also be a unifying |
| all the way down to the roots of the so-called | | | | experience not just for you but also for those |
| family tree. Those who delve into this study find | | | | people whom you find are part of your family. It |
| many rewards at the end of their work, at the | | | | is a chance for you to expand that intimate circle |
| top of the list of which is finding a sense of | | | | of people whom you care about into a bigger |
| kinship with many different kinds of people both in | | | | circle, one that you can trust and count on by the |
| the present and from the past, and many of | | | | simple fact of your relation. |
| whom they may not even know they are related | | | | Reaching back into the past through genealogy is |
| to. | | | | also a way for people to discover more about |
| Of the 6 billion or so people living in the world | | | | themselves through the collective experiences of |
| today, you will be surprised at who among those | | | | their ancestors. This knowledge isn't just about a |
| billions you can certainly call part of your family. | | | | sense of self-history but also about a sense of |
| Former president George W. Bush, for example, | | | | inner knowledge shaped by the people who |
| may have been one of those amused at the | | | | contributed to bringing you into the present. |
| distant relation between him and staunch political | | | | So reach out and reach back. Discover more |
| rival, John Kerry, his cousin, whom he ran against | | | | about yourself and the people you love and be |
| in the U.S. presidential elections of 2004. More | | | | ready for the surprises that will come your way |
| surprising is the family connection, though distant, | | | | as you look into your family's genealogy. Who |
| between him and Playboy icon Hugh Hefner - talk | | | | knows, you might even be related to a celebrity, |
| about opposite ends of the pole. | | | | a pop star, a politician or a newsmaker - anyone |
| One just never knows what kind of surprises | | | | of whom ought to make you proud. |
| tracing kinship brings through Genealogy research. | | | | |