You know what a regular family tree is. A fact
sheet that goes back until your roots disappear or they have been eaten by a
wild pig. They’re great to read to see if knighthood or dukedom is in your
blood—or if a horse thief hangs from a stout branch!
But what if you could create a new, growing tree that started right now,
expanded for 100 or 1000 years, and drew every one of your living relatives—plus
those yet to live—into a warm, tightly-bound clan? You can. You have almost
every tool at hand because of the extraordinary electronic revolution we are
experiencing.
It's the 21st century, the miracle era of easy and inexpensive digital preservation. Time to get three-dimensional! Include the
old-fashioned family tree but why not start collecting the actual words, voices,
and actions (almost the souls) of every member of your living family through
sound, jpgs, podcasts, videos, and digital writing? Most important, almost everything can be stored at
a family website, to be instantly enjoyed by your cousin cross country or your
great-grandson’s daughter 60 or 260 years from now, after she’s born and is
looking back for inspiration or to see what her ancestors (that's you!) did and
thought.
That's about as close to magic as we can get—and you (or somebody in your present family) can make it happen! This book
gives you step-by-step, how-to details, written by a straightforward, funny non-techie!
Contents:
Introduction
Dedication and Acknowledgements
Section 1. The Idea
A Great New Idea, a Vision, and the Benefits
Section 2. The Parts
The Parts of Your Living Family Tree
- The nuclear website
- Friendly software
- How might your living family tree appear?
- Do you have a say in how the website looks?
Section 3. The Ways
The Ways Your Family Information is Shared
- Words
- Photos
- Sounds
- Video
- Artefacts
Section 4. The Director
Your Living Family Tree Director
- Finding that heroic first seed planter
- Equipment needed
- A Family Tree Board?
- Family reunions
- Getting the whole family involved
- Focussing on the oldest and the youngest first
- Money and bill paying
- What do you do right now?
Section 5. The Future
Your Living Family Tree and the Future
- If somebody doesn’t plant this tree now?
- Keeping it going far into the future…
- And if it disappears for a while?
- Your living family tree for 200, 500, or 1000+ years
Appendix
Personal Information Repository
- Sample Personal Information Birth Sheet
- Sample Personal Information Age 15 Sheet
Family Directory
- Sample Family Directory
Key Date List
- Sample Key Date List
Family Registry: Birth, Baptism, Marriage, and Death
- Sample Birth Registry
“Tip of the Hat” Acclamations
- Sample “Tip of the Hat”
“In Memoriam” Announcements
- Sample “In Memoriam”
Annual Family Summary
- Sample “Annual Family Summary”
Family Treasures in Print
Family Treasure Box
Family Flashes
Ancestral Family Tree
Journals, Diaries, and Memoirs
Unforgettable Recollections
Scrapbooks
DNA and Health Concerns
Other Attachments
Index
