"...to seek and to find the past, a lineage, a history, a family built on a flesh and bone foundation."

Tuesday, January 3, 2012

'A change is as good as a rest'


Once again I am quoting my dad in the title of this post, 'a change is as good as a rest'.  I've decided to refresh the look of 'On a flesh and bone foundation': an Irish History.  Over the last month I have wrestled with the idea of not only changing the background, but changing the title of this blog as well. However, after talking to a friend about it, I decided that the title is what it is because of the meaning behind it.  My friend asked me why my blog has the title it does, and in order to answer her I had to cast my thoughts way back to the beginning of this blog.

I am very blessed to have my wonderful family members in Australia, England, and The United States of America, but the fact is that my family history, at its foundation, is essentially an Irish family history. My mother, my father, and my brother are all Irish born, and in the many generations back from them our family members were born, lived and died in Ireland.   Although I am first generation Canadian, I hold Irish Citizenship and travel on an Irish passport.  In the west country of Ireland, our paternal name can be traced back to the 8th century.

We are Irish to our very core, and that was what inspired the title of this blog, 'On a flesh and bone foundation': An Irish History.  Although I have been composing basic family trees and doing some family history research since I was about 15 years old, for me building on the foundation of my family began in earnest after the death of my dad.  The drive to rediscover the history of our family pushed my research further than ever before.  There is something about getting a sense of the mortality of family members that brings such research into sharp focus.

Along the way, with respect to the title of this blog, I have encountered what was probably inevitable, given the inclusion of the words 'flesh' and 'bone', and I have at times regretted the title; however, the fact is the title still fits.  The 'bones' of this story are the documents, the official records of birth, marriage, death, and so on, which stand as proof of my connection to my ancestors.  The 'flesh' is the stories of my ancestors, the glorious and the ignoble, the joyous and the heartbreaking, all of the times which fill out the skeleton of a life.


12 comments:

  1. I am looking forward to your posts in 2012 and have enjoyed and learned so much from your posts in 2011. You have amazing insight, great stories, and stunning photographs. All the best. Cheers.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Tessa,

    Thank you so much for your lovely comments! You've made my day.

    Cheers to you,
    Jennifer

    ReplyDelete
  3. I always enjoy reading your posts Jennifer. Val Moulton

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hi Val,

    Thanks for your lovely comment too. I really appreciate hearing from you here and on Google+.

    Cheers to you,
    Jennifer

    ReplyDelete
  5. Your new look is gorgeous! The writing, NEVER fails.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Jennifer,
    As you know, I am a long-time fan of your blog. I'm glad you decided not to change the name of your blog. I love the new look. I changed the look of mine a couple of months ago, and although I can visualize a couple of updates, I'm generally glad I did it. I think your background pic is stunning.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Hello Carol and Hello Kathy,

    Oh my goodness ladies I am going to be walking around with a big head from all these compliments. I really appreciate every single comment I receive. Thank you so much to each one of you.

    Cheers to you,
    Jennifer

    ReplyDelete
  8. Jennifer, I'm glad you kept your blog title. I do really like it and for whatever reason, it speaks to me of Ireland (probably because it's an Irish blog, right?). Your new background image is lovely (though I admit to thinking your old background looked Irish, probably because of the green coastline). I wish you all the best in 2012.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Jennifer, yours is one of the most well-written blogs I read and with my Irish heritage I'm always fascinated by your posts.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Hello Nancy and Hello Cassmob,

    Thank you so much for your lovely comments; I really appreciate receiving them.

    Nancy I too liked the old background with the photograph of the Cliffs of Moher. I had a lot of trouble letting go of that one especially since it holds a lot of great memories of travelling there with my family.

    Cheers to each one of you,
    Jennifer

    ReplyDelete
  11. Jennifer, I was traveling all day yesterday and today, so just got a chance to post this late add. I *love* your dad's sentiment and thoroughly agree with it! As for your changes, yes, leave the title as it stands. It is the exact replica of what you are trying to accomplish here. And your graphics are so fitting!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Hi Jacqi,

    Thanks so much for your comments; I always appreciate receiving them.
    "Travelling"? Sounds good; I hope you're having a great time.

    Cheers to you,
    Jennifer

    ReplyDelete

Comments on this blog are always deeply appreciated; however, in the spirit of true collegiality, I ask that you do not write something you would not say to me in person. Because of spammers, CAPTCHA and comments moderation are in operation.

Any comments that include URLs not connected to the post topic, contain misinformation, or in any way resemble advertising, will be removed. Comments submitted by ‘Unknown’ or ‘Anonymous’ persons will not be published.

Cheers, Jennifer

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...