On Remembrance Day
we remember those who have fought
in our more recent wars. It is good to honour
them for their service but it must be remembered that
war affects more than those in the various military services.
War can and does affect also those who live through the conflict
as well as those who come later.
I get reminder emails about watching Ask the Experts, a series of interviews that Diahan Southard does with various experts in the genetic genealogy community. They take place on Your DNA Guide's YouTube channel. The one this past week snuck up on me but I tuned in on time to see it live. Her guest was Judy Russell, the Legal Genealogist. The discussion was interesting and one of the things that Judy said really rang true for me.
I can't remember her exact words, but Judy talked about how knowing one's family stores gives people, particularly young people, strength and resilience. She cited the men and women who made the trek west by wagon train to claim new land. My thoughts didn't stray back that far but I can attest to this. When I was going through a particularly trying time in my life, I found strength by invoking memories of my grandmothers. They both lived in London at the time of the blitz in WWII. The thought of them coping with the disruption and fear that the constant bombing brought gave me the fortitude to get through my day to day life in trying circumstances. Knowing they had been able to carry on told me that I could too.
Images:
Battle of Britain- Blitz, Dawn
image: a view from the north bank of the River Thames in London over towards
the Shot Tower on the south bank. A few civilians are walking on the pavement
in the foreground. Clouds of smoke, showing evidence of fires caused by German
air raids, are visible on the horizon.
