Pilgrimage

So, you remember the post I published Sunday about family stories, and how important they are? That little meditative ramble was actually a prologue for the next couple of weeks.

As I write this, Trish and I are packing up for a family trip to Arizona with my parents.

Yes, I know, Arizona isn't all that popular at the moment... the state's been in the news a lot lately, and not for the right reasons (in my opinion).

But, land-of-the-crazies or not, Arizona is the soil my family's roots are planted in, and a lot of my extended family are still there. As I said in that previous post, my ancestors' names, birth and death dates are easy enough to find on Ancestry.com or any of a number of online resources... what I can't get from those databases, though, are the stories behind those names and dates. We don't know anything about the people who came before us unless those stories are recorded and shared.

I've always been somewhat interested in my family history; getting it all recorded, however, took on a greater significance when my brother's son Christopher was born. I'd kind of like to know this stuff for my own edification and entertainment... but HE might want to know the story of our family, and tell it to his children, and their children, and... yeah. You get the picture.

Besides, it's a good excuse to spend some time with my mom and dad. We only live six hours away from each other, but if you're a regular reader you know how busy Trish and my life can get. We sometimes go months in between seeing each other - the chance to spend a couple of weeks with them isn't something I want to pass up.

So, if you follow me on Twitter, Facebook or Foursquare, don't be surprised if you see me "check in" at some new and different places over the coming days. We'll be covering a lot of the state over the next couple of weeks; as with other trips Trish and I have taken, I'll probably post some photos on our PhotoBucket page - and heck, I'm taking the Flip with me... I might even stick a couple of videos up on my YouTube channel.

Treat Portland well while I'm gone... I'll see you all in a bit!