| There are occasions when someone will ask me | | | | In order that I could make this more clear to |
| to carry out family history research."Can you help | | | | people, I wanted to jot down a line or two of |
| me with my family tree?" they ask. "I've found | | | | explanation. |
| one or two names of ancestors and plugged | | | | If you think of Genealogy as the study of |
| them into my tree" The problem that I have with | | | | ancestry and descent, then you begin to realise |
| this way of looking at the subject is that it | | | | that it refers more especially to the actual search |
| underscores the difference between Genealogy | | | | for ancestors. Family history, on the other hand, is |
| and Family history. You may well have seen both | | | | all about the story of your forbears. Consider that |
| written or spoken about as if they were the | | | | it is the story of the events that happened in the |
| same. Every now and then you will find that | | | | life of your ancestor. Family history can be |
| someone tells you that they are different, but | | | | described as 'genealogy come alive' as it tells your |
| then doesn't go on to tell you why. Don't you find | | | | family's story from generation to generation. |
| that frustrating? | | | | |