Flustered by Family History?

Here Are 9 Ways to Enjoy It!

By Brianna Thyberg

Family History Department

When names, dates, and places start to blur together, try these nine ideas to make family history work more fun. 

Have you ever felt overwhelmed, frustrated, or even bored by the idea of doing family history? I know I have! Sometimes we don’t know what we’re doing or even how to get started. But there’s help!

Elder Benjamín De Hoyos of the Seventy recently taught:

“To those of you who do not feel capable of doing this work, you should know that you are not alone. We can all turn to the tools that the Church has prepared. …

“As we follow the guidance of the prophets and learn how to do our family history and perform the temple ordinances for our ancestors, we will experience great joy to the point that we will not want to stop doing it. The Spirit will flood our hearts, awaken our faculties to do it, and guide us as we search for the names of our ancestors. But let us remember that family history is more than just looking for names, dates, and places. It is uniting families and feeling the joy that comes from extending to them the ordinances of the gospel.”

Here are some simple and fun ideas to get you interested in your family history:

Getting Involved with FamilySearch

1. Take family members’ names to the temple with Ordinances Ready.

Finding names to bring to the temple has never been easier. All you need to do is sign in to FamilySearch (either online or through the app), select Ordinances Ready, and choose the ordinance you would like to perform. Then FamilySearch will find names for you to take to the temple! These names could be pulled from your family tree or even names shared to the temple by members of your ward.

2. Explore temple and record hints based on your family history.

These hints are possible next steps to take on FamilySearch based on your family information and activity on the site. They invite you to do things like request ordinances, add missing information, and review historical records. The more ancestors you add to your family tree, the more likely you are to receive new suggestions.

3. Find opportunities to help others discover their ancestors.

Opportunities to participate in family history in your part of the world are available to everyone around you—not just members of the Church. Use what you know to help other people discover their ancestors! You can teach others to improve the accuracy of their family tree by connecting standard places to unverified places. Another opportunity is to show your friends how to quickly review first and last names to make sure the names are indexed correctly.

Preserving Family Memories

4. See what memories have been preserved on FamilySearch.

One of the best parts about FamilySearch is the large collection of memories that individuals add about their ancestors. Some of those memories could be for your ancestors. You can explore the memories on your ancestors’ pages and discover stories and photos you have never seen before.

5. Collect family stories and scan family photos.

Sometimes we forget that we have family history all around us! This history can reside in our family members’ stories and memories or in bins full of scrapbooks and pictures. Take the time to talk to your relatives and record their stories so your family will have them forever. You can even scan physical photos of yourself and family members into the FamilySearch app using your phone.

6. Go out and make new memories—and record them.

Every day is an opportunity to make new memories. Whether we’re spending time with family, friends, or by ourselves, we can keep a record of our lives for our future posterity through journaling. If you struggle with writing down your thoughts, try keeping an audio journal with voice recordings or keep a photo journal by taking pictures of your day-to-day life! You can then save excerpts from your journal to FamilySearch for your future family to view for years to come.

Traveling with Your Family … History

7. Plan a vacation based around your heritage.

Many of my ancestors come from Denmark, so I could plan a trip to visit where my family lived and immerse myself in my family’s culture. I would plan on going to museums, eating traditional food, and visiting some of the cemeteries where my ancestors are buried. The FamilySearch Blog has some great ideas to help you plan your heritage vacation!

8. See if your family has any connections to a place you are already visiting.

On a recent trip to New York City, I decided to see if I had any ancestors that had lived there. Using FamilySearch, I discovered that my fourth great-grandmother Rachel Laird immigrated from Scotland to America and saw the Statue of Liberty only two years after it was completed! Learning about Rachel helped me to feel more connected to my ancestors and made the trip I already had planned even more special.

9. Don’t have time for a trip? Plan a family history staycation.

There are many fun ways to create a heritage-themed evening at home! Try using the FamilySearch “Where Am I From?” activity to find out where your ancestors are from. Choose a place, learn about an ancestor from there, make food from that place, and maybe even watch a movie based in that location.

If you like the tips shared in this article, see what else FamilySearch has to offer at RootsTech! Discover the incredible stories and latest innovations at FamilySearch.org/RootsTech/.

See full link to article HERE.