Our family gatherings may look a little different this year, and perhaps smaller than we have enjoyed in the past. Yet, holidays are still a great time to learn more about your family's history, and the many members of your family tree. I encourage you to take time to share stories and family memories with your loved ones as you gather this year.

 

Every family is different, and every family has their own unique story. With permission, I share this story about a family, and the significance of writing everything down as you learn more about how everyone is related in your own family. Sometimes, you just never know the twists and turns a conversation can take. Perhaps later, you will need to see it all laid out in front of you, written down and recorded, before it is possible to attach everyone to your family tree. Sometimes, it is like a big jigsaw puzzle as you try to put all the pieces together.

 

I will admit, that in order to share this story accurately, I had to resort to using cut-out paper dolls representing all the different members of this family. I had to lay them all out on the floor in front of me before I could get a clear picture of how everyone is related to each other.

 

Ok, grab that cup of tea and get comfy, because here we go. This is a story of five boys and how they are all related.

 

To begin our story Sam and Sally fell in love and got married. As the years went by, they had two boys named Steve and Tom. Across town, Joe and Jane had fallen in love and had gotten married, as well. As the years passed, they had two boys named Tom and Jessie.

 

Regrettably, Sam and Sally later split up and got divorced. Sally then married a man named Chad, and together they had a son named Billy. Sam also remarried. He married a lady named Alice, who had two daughters from a previous marriage named Carrie and Betty. Across town, Joe and Jane had also split up and gotten divorced. Things did not work out for Sally and Chad either, and they got divorced as well.

 

It is here, that this family tree becomes a little complicated to build. Sally falls in love with Joe and they soon get married. Sally has three boys, and Joe has two boys, from their previous marriages, and… they each have a son named Tom. Yep, TWO sons named Tom in this new blended family!

 

Billy's father Chad, Sally's ex-husband, falls in love with Jane, Joe's ex-wife, the mother of Jessie and Tom, and they get married.

 

Are you still with me? Remember those paper dolls I was telling you about?

 

Many times throughout the years, this family's Christmas celebrations have included all five boys, Steve and Tom, Jessie and Tom, and Billy, all gathering as one big family around the dinner table. Stepbrothers? Half-brothers? I will let you ponder this for a bit and try to figure that puzzle out for yourself.

 

Over the years, these five brothers have remained close. They have all now become wonderful young men and have families of their own. Daughters-in-law, grandchildren, sisters-in-law, and nieces and nephews have all been added to the family vacations and many holiday celebrations. There are many happy times recorded in family photos and many beautiful scrapbooks record shared memories.

 

Oh... you thought I forgot about Sam and Alice and her two girls?

 

Nope. Love continues to be found when you least expect it. And, sometimes, creates a real challenge in creating a family tree!

 

Bringing this big family full circle (and creating a fun challenge for a genealogist of the future) Jessie met his stepbrothers Steve and Tom's stepsister Betty, fell in love, and they are now happily engaged to be married, adding yet another curve in a branch of this incredibly unique family tree.

 

If you are wondering the reason I share this special family's unique story with you, it is to encourage you to ask your relatives to share their stories this holiday season. You just never know what you might learn about your family, and how all the pieces of the puzzle fit together.

 

And yes... Write it all down! Leave a few hints for your family historians and genealogists of the future so that they have a clue or two of how everyone is related.

 

Wishing you and yours a beautiful and blessed Christmas. May you enjoy every moment of cherished time (even if it is virtually this year) with your friends and families during this holiday season.

 

*Names have been changed to protect the privacy of all those in this special family story.