I have been contemplating lately the miracles I've received while doing my family history. I suppose part of my contemplation comes from the fact that I was just called as one of our Ward's family history consultants. Tonight I got to go to some training, using the new Family Search program. It isn't in our area yet, but the program is really something to look forward to! But boy, I have errors to correct in the work I have done for both my father's family and my mother's family.
Sigh. My dear mother's family, a place I have labored the last few years with much love. This labor has resulted in some beautiful blessings.
Just before my beautiful mother passed away several years ago, I had the privilege of helping her as she battled Laryngeal Cancer. During the daily trips to Lubbock Texas for her radiation treatment I would ask her what memories she had of her grandparents, aunts, uncles, and etc. I knew the answer, I just wanted to double check. Yep, I was right. She didn't have any memories of any family. She did say she had some vague memory when she was quite small of "an old house, with some older women there, and old furniture." But Grandpa Fontaine had quit work in the factory to work on the race tracks. As a consequence, Grandma and Grandpa Fontaine, my mother and her sister traveled throughout the United States, eventually settling in California. My mother's two brothers joined the family during these times too. They never returned to Massachusetts.
Mom passed away in 2004. I still miss her. But shortly after she left me for heaven, the miracles began.
I had a dream. In this dream I was walking through an old, empty home. From the house I entered what looked like an old, empty barn that had faucets or showers or something in it. And there was a cement wall that separated an area leading to a field. My Grandpa Fontaine entered through a door that lead to this grassy field, and sat on a table. He looked young, and he looked sad. I said, "Grandpa! Why are you sad?!" He said, "Two beautiful books." I said, "Grandpa, I will find your two beautiful books, I will! Please don't be sad!" He repeated the same words, while hanging his head in sadness, "Two beautiful books." I said again, "Grandpa I will find the books!" Then I woke up. I knew Grandpa had a brother named Ben, but the thought immediately crossed my mind that he had both a brother and a sister. I never knew this.
The following Saturday my dear friend Isabelle and I took a trip to the Salt Lake Family History Center. I spent the day looking up any records I could on the Fontaine family in Worcester Massachusetts. I found a lot! I found my Grandfather's father, and HIS father! I found my Grandfather's parents marriage record. And I found my Grandpa in two census records with his parents. Yep, there as big as day....he had a brother and a sister! The brother was Ben, the sister was Mable. But wait...the next census has her listed as Mary!
I spent much time studying this discrepancy. Finally I got on the Genealogy.com website, and clicked on to the message boards. I left a message about my Fontaine family there, then never gave it another thought. I did dig through my mother's boxes and found holiday cards that her mother had received. Some of those cards were signed "your sister May." Was May short for Mable?
I clicked on my E-mail one day and saw that "Bud and Diane" had written me. Was I reading that right? I was confused since my brother's name is Bud, but my husband's sister is Diane. Why on earth were they writing me together. I must not be seeing that correctly I thought. I looked again...yep, my brother was listed there with Steve's sister. Huh? I opened it. ( A truly daring thing to do! What prompted me?!) Diane explained who she was, the wife of....my mother's cousin! We didn't know each other but she had seen my post on Genealogy.com and they were doing some research and did we want to swap information! I yelled, I cried, and shouted for joy! These were the things that happened to everyone else...but me?! Over the course of time we exchanged pictures--she had more pictures of my Grandfather, and she sent me pictures of Ben, Fred and Agnes (their parents), her own family, and lots of information. I sent her only a few pictures since I didn't have any. And she solved the problem I had with Grandpa's sister. Her name was May!
Over the last several years I have grown to love Bud and Diane. We have never met. We have e-mailed each other, and we have spoken on the phone sometimes. They are such beautiful, wonderful people. My mother would have absolutely loved them. I get to know them for her, though. This family has a farm, and they are family oriented people. These are the things my mother loved, and she passed this love of family on to me. (I am to much of a weakling to farm! I do grow a garden though!)
Recently, I have come in contact with one of May's grandson's. He has shared with me the little bit of information on Agnes, Grandpa's mother, that he has. A true miracle I think.
How blessed I am to have felt the love of my Heavenly Father, and the closeness of my mother, her father, and other family members as I have done this work. Words can't express the feelings I have had doing this research. In Malachi we read, "For He will turn the hearts of the father's to the children, and the hearts of the children to the father's, else I will smite the earth with a curse". I have felt my heart turn to my forefathers, and have felt deeply sacred spiritual emotions in the process. It is truly the work of God.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment