Family History
I suppose everybody, at a certain age,
Wishes they talked to parents more,
Wished they learnt a few details of
The many generations gone before.
Oh I traced the family tree back
Over two hundred and fifty years
But it’s only bare recorded facts
No inkling of their joys and fears.
Obvious tragedies recorded
In some very early deaths
Some of them it seems
Barely got to draw breaths.
But, there are hints of scandals,
Romances really gone wrong
Yet somehow the family survived
As the centuries went along.
My beloved Great Grandad
Remembered for his stern ways
It seems was a bit of a lad
In his much younger days.
They seem to have come
From many places far and near
Yet somehow fate brought them
To where I’m sitting here
In the Village graveyard
By an unmarked family mound
Now almost disappeared
Almost levelled with the ground.
But, there’s a sense of peace
Being in this peaceful place.
Eyes closed I can recall
Great Grandad’s laughing face,
The Uncles Aunties and Cousins
All there at my peaceful start,
The many vagaries of my life
Drove me and my family apart.
I wish I’d talked with my parents
Learned more family history
The bare facts I’ve learned hint
At many intriguing bits of mystery.
Copyright © Terry Ireland | Year Posted 2022
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