I Lived!

Two weeks ago, my grandfather passed away. He was a good man. I have such wonderful memories of him and his love for me. I miss him, but am happy he can now move on with his eternal progression. Before his passing, my cousin was inspired to collect all of my grandpa’s items and compile them into one book, I Lived!, for all his posterity. Grandpa’s “history binders were filled with hundreds of loose-leaf handwritten pages, typed pages, letters, certificates, photos, emails, newspaper clippings, and other documents. This book has reorganized that source material into a more readable, narrative format that tells the story of who Grandpa is and what he has done.” 

I have recently been reading my grandfather’s history and have felt so close to him as I have been learning about his life. I have read all about his childhood, growing up years and most importantly his testimony of our Savior. He had a hard life and worked very hard all his life just to make ends meet, but was grateful for everything that he had been blessed with. He is such a great example to me of sharing his testimony and living what he believed. His personal history is filled with stories of faith and obedience.

I want to encourage all of you to get to know your family that has passed on. Find stories about their lives, get to know them and see how choices they made have affect who you have become today. Share the stories and memories you have of them with family. I would love to share all of my memories of my grandfather and segments of his history, but it wouldn’t be special to you as it is to me. Seek after your own grandparents and their stories and it will make you so much closer to those who made it possible for you to be here today.

If you aren’t sure where to start or how to find stories about your ancestors. Try starting here. . . https://familysearch.org/