Terry Ireland Poet Rhyme

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.

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Ilene Bauer October 18, 2022 at 1:41 PM you've made an excellent point, terry. i have many questions i can no longer ask, since there is no one left to answer them. well done! Terry Ireland October 19, 2022 at 1:07 AM What is so sad is that I visited a very old Aunt almost daily for 2 years after she lost her husband. Conversation was difficult ar times. After she died i found a box of well over a hundred photos.. The conversations we could have have had together over those. Thanks Ilene = Terry