know where they came from John Steinbeck
about 1910
Chappelle--Loudon--Raycroft--Sherman--Thorn--Banter
Carney--Faas--VanNorman--Wadsworth--Wisse
click here
when....
...if you get locked in a library overnight and you never even notice.
...when you hyperventilate at the sight of an old cemetery.
...if you'd rather browse in a cemetery than a shopping mall.
...when you think every home should have a microfilm reader.
...if you'd rather read census schedules than a good book.
...when you know every town clerk in your state by name.
...if town clerks lock the doors when they see you coming.
...when you're more interested in what happened in 1697 than 1997.
...if you store your clothes under the bed and your closet is carefully stacked with notebooks and journals.
...if you can pinpoint Harrietsham, Hawkhurst, and Kent on a map of England, but can't locate Topeka, Kansas.
...when all your correspondence begins, "Dear Cousin,"
...if you've traced every one of your ancestral lines back to Adam and Eve, have it all fully documented, and still don't want to quit.
...and finally...
...you're invited to a cemetery expedition and you bring a shovel.
all down
