Thanks for sharing that.No, I understand.
The one thing I wish I would have known before I started was how emotionally draining and somewhat traumatic genealogy research is. One minute you're happy - then you're pissed off and ready to kill someone -- then you're crying and depressed. Repeat cycle.
So, truly ease yourself into the process and take your time. But, most important - take long breaks when researching. Cause it really does bring something to surface.
For myself, my last name is not my bloodline - cause my father took his stepfather's name - even though he was raised around and with his father. You know back then many of the same families all lived on the same road - as they all sharecropped on the same piece of land.
But, my father and aunt were "break babies" during my Grannie and her husband downtimes. And I guess my Grandfather and his wife downtimes too. They all lived next door to each other.
So, all my life I have had a last name that I have no connection too -- other than it was my paternal Grannie's husband and his family.
I didn't find this out till I graduated H.S. and really thought about it one day when I was visiting Alabama for the weekend during undergrad in the AUC. I called my Dad and asked why all our family in his hometown in Alabama last name wasn't the one we carried. Then he told me. It was crazy.
But, I applaud you for thinking about starting the process. And you have a huge family - that's a blessing! I"m the baby of four -- and the-- so you already know - my siblings just love me.
All in all, some stuff you will wish you had never found out or saw - but it's many more things you will learn that you will be happy you did.
This is true, I didn't realise what a high infant mortality rate there was back in the day. Grand Parents had brothers and sisters I didn't know about that died young. Granny on my moms side had 17 kids (no tv) a few died at birth . The search was a bit easier for me because my dad spoke to his elders quite a bit so knew a bit of family history.
