Following a three-month break, there will be lots to share on Thursday 24 February in the ‘Pains and Gains’ reports which commence our sessions. 

Our Family Story topic for sharing after the coffee break is ‘A sense of place’. The brief – ‘Write about a place which was important to a number of your forebears.  Why did you choose this place?  How did it feature in their story, why was it important to them? 

Share your reflections in 150 to 400 words (no penalties for exceeding), accompanied by a photograph/s, hopefully captured close to the time in which the place featured in one or more of your ancestors lives’.  Oral presentations fine too!  

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Bev Lee

Family Story topics to begin the year,  remembering of course the preface – “from 150 to 400 words or thereabouts (no penalties for exceeding), oral presentations fine too!”  

February - ‘A sense of place’
Write about a place which was important to a number of your forebears.  Why did you choose this place?  How did it feature in their story, why was it important to them?  Share your reflections in 150 to 400 words, accompanied by a photograph/s, hopefully captured close to the time in which it featured in one or more of their lives. 

March - ‘Hunch’
Sometimes when researching we find ‘a black hole’, however have a fairly strong hunch about a possible resolution of the problem.  Our dilemma - we don’t want to record it if the evidence isn’t strong enough.  Describe a fairly strong hunch you continue to have during your research.  Who does it involve, why do you think it might apply; what is stopping you from including it in your family tree.  (If you have resolved one, you could describe this instead)

April - ‘They were there when….’
Did someone in your family tree experience a significant news, historical or cultural even first-hand?  Share your understanding of what may have been their experience.

Universal ‘Back Up’ topic – if a topic doesn’t inspire you or you have writers’ block!
‘A Ha Moments’ and/or ‘Disappointments’
What stand out among the memorable ‘a ha moments’ and/or memorable ‘disappointments’ you have experienced while doing family research?  Pick one (or two) and write about it, explaining when it happened, who in your family tree was involved, what effect it had on you.  It may be an ‘a ha moment’ or ‘disappointment’ you have felt for the person involved, or for you as you negotiated your family research journey. 


Bev Lee