The volunteers and I from the EWGS Outreach Committee have been giving a series of presentations to the several Spokane County libraries. This has been quite fun, introducing folks to this wonderful new hobby. Seeing our increased numbers at EWGS meetings has been exciting too.
This is a famous statue by sculptor Rodin called The Thinker. I chose this image today to illustrate a point: too many folks seem to be coming to our meetings and classes expecting a Magic Pill for Genealogy (at best) or listening for the speaker to address their particular problem (at worst). Sadly, they are hearing without listening.
May I explain? After a full hour's talk and handout of where to go to get genealogy-education-help (EWGS, YouTube, Google, FamilySearch WIKI, etc.) a dear sweet person raised her hand and asked are there any records in New Mexico? She had not made the leap from hearing about a resource to thinking " oh wow, this could help ME!" She was not (yet?) applying the learning to herself. She was not thinking.
Dear Readers: It's like pills in a bottle. If you don't take what your doctor taught you about, and offered as help to you, the pills won't do you a bit of good.
Here's your new mantra: Apply all I learn sitting in genealogy meetings and classes to MY family history problems; the teacher is talking to ME; think about it.
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