My Great Grandmother Just Came for a Visit

I'm thankful to live at a time when technology is so available to help us connect with our ancestors. My mom and dad were divorced when my twin brother and I were still in diapers and we grew up living with our dad and step-mother. We visited our mom according to orders from the Court, but the visits were so few that we barely got to know our mother, much less ever learning much about her family or ancestors! We did spend time with her immediate family and heard some family names along the way, but I was young those times I spent in the home of her parents and it never occurred to me to ask who was pictured in the portraits hanging on the bedroom wall.

It wasn't until the mid-1990s that I even became slightly interested in learning more about my ancestors, much to the credit of my husband. I eventually made contact (by the grace of God) with cousins of my mother who live in California and who have spent much of their lifetime tracing the family genealogy! How lucky is that? My beloved new cousins have generously shared photos, documents, books, and stories with me, so that today I feel much better acquainted with my mother's side of the family.

I learned that my mother's grandmother [and my grandmother's mother :-) ] was Emma Cornelia Strait. I had never heard her name until 10 years ago and I fell in love with her. Emma Cornelia. What a pretty name. I've received a few photos of her from the cousins in California, but today, through the miracle of technology and the resources available on Ancestry.com, I woke up to a new photo I hadn't seen. Another cousin in Michigan and I trade photos through our family trees on Ancestry and yesterday she posted new photos. What a miracle. I opened my email, saw what had been posted and I felt like my great grandmother had come to my house for a visit this morning. A gentle warmth went through my body when I clicked on the link that opened the picture that you see at the top of this story. It was very comforting.

Thank you, Grandma Emma for coming to see me today. It's been a wonderful way to start my day!