Hello,
I am curious if other people have any special beliefs or experiences in relation to genealogy research?
I personally have a few, and have come across a few ideas brought up in other G2G conversations (like past life stories, dejavu, ghosts, etc.). I am very open minded in terms of beliefs/experiences/superstitions/cultural stuff - etc. (ideas in general!) and would love to read some stories from other people willing to share.
My grandfather was also very interested in genealogy, especially in his later years. He too was very open minded and interested in many ideas. One idea he really liked was called "effortless prosperity" through positive thinking (written about by bijan anjomi, a self-help/spiritual guy). It's almost like an "ask and you shall receive" or "like attracts like" type concept - "seek and you shall find". Thinking along these lines, he told my mom that he believed that his ancestors would help him seek out and find their information when he did his research. He felt that if he found a brick wall, it was only a matter of time before the spirit of an ancestor would help him come across a clue to lead to more information. Sometimes I think he may have been right! Several times I have experienced what seems to be a very unexpected break through - maybe someone in the tree who I would not have thought to have a connection with, or care to learn more about... but then suddenly I find a bit of their life story.
For awhile I spent so many hours searching for the information on one of my great grandfathers. I was at a loss - I had scoured Google and other websites, posted on G2G here, and even sent a message to a friend in Eastern Europe in hopes that she would have access to some record that would provide a clue (she did not). About a day or two after I did that, I suddenly received a text message from my aunt telling me she had found some old genealogy books and would love if I took it off her hands. I went and picked them up, and to my surprise, it contained an entire book written about the history of the village my great grandfather was from (as well as the name of his parents and siblings). More recently I also discovered an incredibly detailed obituary belonging to a great grand uncle, and a new profile created by new wiki tree user that connected my tree to another one and broke another brick wall. Of course, you might say it is inevitable to find the information if I keep seeking, but I truly believe my Grandpa may have been correct to feel that a spirit had provided some help. :)
