Family Tree

I decided to climb my family tree
To see how we appeared in history
If you ever tried it, you know what it's all about
But I doubt if too many uncover what I found out

For starters there was a great uncle named Ned
And the family all said he was touched in the head
Since he had no address he was hard to trace
It seems he lived in a tree house behind his pa's place
Now Neds pa was in politics so he often made the news
But usually for an escapade under the influence of booze

Then there was a Mamie on my mothers side
Who just seemed to enjoy being a bride
She married eight times and had quite a life
But never divorced any, so they all thought they had a wife

Now, there was another ancestor who was quite a guy
And some still believe he was the first man to fly
Before Orville and Wilber, he took to the air
In a home made contraption that gave everyone a scare
Of course when he landed, it wasn't a pretty sight
For it was a thunderous crash that ended his flight

And on dads side there was one with a real sense of humor
He impersonated a king, or so goes the rumor
He was having a great time, enjoying all the to do
When the queen showed up and said "just who are you?"
We're not sure what happened after that scene
He just disappeared, never again to be seen

I had great fun hunting my ancestors down
I found a soldier, a sailor, and even a clown
There were skeletons in closets, and mysteries galore
And the family tales made them grow even more

So let me tell you friends, if you want to have some fun
Start tracing your ancestors, it never gets done
That tree just grows wider with more kin exposed
And each with a story to tell in a book that's never closed
You'll cherish them all, but do keep an open mind
Because only God knows what you are going to find


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        Grandma Climbed The Family Tree


There's been a change in Grandma, we've noticed as of late
She's always reading history, or jotting down some date.
She's tracing back the family, we'll all have pedigrees,
Grandma's got a hobby, she's Climbing Family Trees

Poor Grandpa does the cooking, and now, or so he states,
he even has to wash the cups and the dinner plates.
Well, Grandma can't be bothered, she's busy as a bee,
Compiling genealogy for the Family Tree.

She has not time to baby-sit, the curtains are a fright.
No buttons left on Grandpa's shirt, the flower bed's a sight.
She's given up her club work, the serials on TV,
The only thing she does nowdays is climb the Family Tree.

The mail is all for Grandma, it comes from near and far.
Last week she got the proof she needs to join the DAR.
A momumental project - to that we all agree,
A worthwhile avocation - to climb the Family Tree.

There were pioneers and patriots mixed with our kith and kin,
Who blazed the paths of wilderness and fought through thick and thin.
But none more staunch than Grandma, whose eyes light up with glee,
Each time she finds a missing branch for the Family Tree.

To some it's just a hobby, to Grandma it's much more.
She learns the joys and heartaches of those who went before.
They loved, they lost, they laughed, they wept -- and now for you and me,
They live again in spirit around the Family Tree.

At last she's nearly finished, and we are each exposed.
Life will be the same again, this we all suppose.
Grandma will cook and sew, serve crullers with our tea.
We'll have her back, just as before that wretched Family Tree.



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                    The Elusive Ancestor
                  poem by Merrell Kenworthy


I went searching for an ancestor. I cannot find him still.
He moved around from place to place and did not live a will.
He married where a courthouse burned. He mended all his fences.
He avoided any man who came to take the U.S. Census.

He always kept his luggage packed, this man who had no fame.
And every 20 years or so, this rascal changed his name.
His parents came from Europe. They should be upon some list
of passengers to U.S.A., but somehow they got missed.

And no one else in this world is searching for this man.
So, I play geneasolitaire to find him if I can.
I'm told he's buried in a plot, with tombtone he was blessed;
but the weather took engraving, and some vandals took the rest.

He died before the county clerks decided to keep records.
No Family Bible has emerged, in spite of all my efforts.
To top it off this ancestor, who caused me many groans,
Just to give me one more pain, betrothed a girl named JONES.


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                      Our Ancestors


If you could see your ancestors
All standing in a row
Would you be proud of them or not
Or don't you really know?

Some strange discoveries are made
In climbing family trees
And some of them you know, do not
Particularly please.

If you could see your ancestors
All standing in a row,
There might be some of them perhaps
You wouldn't care to know.

But there's another question, which
Requires a different view.
IF you could meet your ancestors
Would they be proud of YOU?

Author Unknown


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          Your Name


You got from your father
It was all he had to give
So it's yours to use and cherish
for as long as you live.

If you lose the watch he gave you
It can always be replaced
But a black mark on your name, Son,
Can never be erased.

It was clean the day you took it
And a worthy name to bear
When he got it from his father
There was no dishonor there.

So make sure you guard it wisely,
After all is said and done
You'll be glad the name is spotless
When you give it to your son.