Like most things, it can all depend on how you look at it.
It's easy to get frustrated when we hit a dead-end researching for ancestors. No matter what your enthusiasm level going in nor how sunny your disposition, it can happen to anyone.
Yes we want to keep working at it, and No we don't want to be a quitter, but we have to remind ourselves to keep chipping away at the wall and not smashing ourselves against it. I've heard it said, "don't get stuck on the dot." Those of us who are obsesive must keep our nature in check.
At first my Brick-Walls were a source of stress for me, but now I've had a change of heart. Now I find them a source of security.
In a sense... I completed that part of the puzzle. I mean.... was I ever really going to connect every line past Charlamaign all the way to Jesus's father? How far back in history and at what point could I feel I completed my knowledge and task? Somewhere along the line the global-family feeling kicked in... that I had connected myself to the rest of the human race firmly.
If nobody in the last hundred years has ever been able to determine the father of my ancestor, records were destroyed or nonexistent, and it likely will never be known.... then it is unlikely I will suddenly solve it. The possiblility of new records or clues keeps me chipping, but I will no longer bash my head against it. I accept that it is as far as my known line goes and that more may never be known.
After acceptance came relief for me. Now I take pride in knowing exactly who the first known people in those lines were. Nobody on the planet knows more or further back.
I encourage others to approach their genealogical walls with enthusiasm and dedication, and to be pleased if they reach the end-of-the-line.
It can be a positive if you view it as a positive!
All the best,
Robert
