In case you wondered

I confess that the subject and content of some of my posts may seem random to the uninitiated. But there is a purpose to my ramblings.

Let me explain.

A few years ago I realized that I was the only one who knew the details of the history of my family.  Much of my insight results from thirty years of research in the archives in Belfast and Norwich, coupled with first-hand knowledge of three of my grandparents.

Some years ago I documented what I had discovered.  One evening during a skiing trip with my sons in Sweden, I read excerpts from my notes.  They listened with polite attention, but it was obvious that they were not easily enthused by ancient history; they wanted to know of my own travels and experiences.

But how to document it?

I have always had the view that autobiographies are usually an ego trip for the writer.  I did nothing further.

It was not until I recently read ‘La Colmena‘, by Camilo José Cela, that I found the inspiration and the technique to write up a series of seemingly random but ultimately connected events.

So one by one I am working though my long list.  And when I run out of inspiration, I will knit together the resultant product into a document that can hopefully be passed to my descendants.

And perhaps they will know me, although I may be long gone.

So wonder no more…