Leaving a Story

So, I got to thinking the other day that I wish I had something that had been passed down from generation to generation. An heirloom that had been handed down from eldest son to eldest son. Something that was in someway connected to an ancestor. The closest thing I have I don't really have yet. My mother has some wood furniture that her father had made. And I am sure I will get some if not all of it when she passes (not that I hope for that day). My mom has made cross-stitches that she has given my brother and me as gifts over the years. And I'm sure we can pass those down to our children and grandchildren. And there will probably be things that I make or acquire that my kids will take and pass on down the line.

I feel that these objects tell a story of the person from which they originated. Or a story of why that object was important to the family or the descendants of that family. But I have none of that to help me in investigating who my ancestors were. So then I got to thinking about what else would be great to have that I might have a possibility of finding somewhere. And I thought of journals or diaries. Fortunately, I do have one small diary of my grandmother that she kept while she was being courted by my grandfather. She tells of her dates and meeting his family and him meeting her family. Awesome stories. I just wish I had more.

So then that got me thinking again......what stories am I leaving for my kids. At the moment, there are a couple of blog entries and some old journals that I started off and on over the last 20 years. But there buried and I don't even know if I can find them all. So, I have challenged myself that I am going to get all those journals together and I am going to first find a place that I can preserve them. Second, I am going to transcribe them, so that I can publish them. Third, I am going to start another journal. Something that is a little more intimate than this blog. Something that I can express my feelings on more personal issues so that my descendants may get a glimpse of the person that I am.

I once came across a website that promotes keeping journals. The website is www.ldsjournal.com. It is a free service that allows you to keep your journal stored online and then for a fee they will publish your journal into a book. This is how I am going to go about publishing all my past and future journals. I encourage you to check it out. It does have some upgradable options for a yearly fee. But I do warn that it does have an LDS church influence, although minimal.

Has anyone else come across an online journal site?? Maybe something with more functions or options than LDS Journal. Or does anyone else have ideas for telling your story for future generations??

Third Time's a Charm

Alright, everyone, here is attempt number 3. My third attempt at starting a blog that I will hopefully stick to this time. I hope I do because I am starting to run out of ideas for blog titles. And some of you may be a little confused with the title that I have chosen for this one. And it may even change again, but only slightly. I think I will be adding a poll to see how ya'll might feel about the change, but I will explain that a little later.

First, let me explain the origin of this blog. As I mentioned, I have previously started 2 other blogs "My Life As.......Me!" and "Roots, Twigs, and Berries." The first was an anecdotal view of the things that I experienced in my life. My life is rather boring however and that blog was abandoned due to lack of material. The second was my attempt to document my experiences and such while researching my family history. That one was abandoned because I became to involved with other things in my life that I found I had no time to put the time and effort into it that I felt I needed to. Then it got to the point that I didn't want to update it because I hadn't for so long that it seemed rather pointless.

So, that brings me to "The Leaf Hunter." Yes, odd I know. However, a dentist once asked me if I was a "hunter" or a "gatherer." Knowing that flew army helicopters, he was asking me what kind I flew. Being a "hunter" meant flying the Apache helicopter (which, for those that don't know, is an attack helicopter). Being a "gatherer" meant flying a Blackhawk helicopter, which has varying missions including picking up troops (gathering). So, being an Apache pilot, I proudly told him I was a "hunter."

"What does 'Leaf' mean?" Well, I go back to my interest in genealogy. Think of a family tree being as a representation of my entire family past and present. (DUH!) Anyway, the branches are all the different families. What are all the leaves??? The individuals, every one connected to a branch or family connected to the whole tree. And what does a genealogist or family historian do? They find all those individuals...those leaves. There ya go....."The Leaf Hunter"

Anyway, although I am essentially starting a whole new blog, I thought I would import all the posts from my other two blogs. I would appreciate ya'll taking a look at them and commenting as you feel appropriate. Don't worry there aren't that many and I really think you'll enjoy them. But you do have to read them to understand the poll that I will be posting on here soon. Oh, it would probably be better to start at the earliest post and work your way forward in time. So read away and enjoy.