Eleven Seconds

"All of our ancestors give us the precious gift of life. Do we use it wisely? Do we use it well?" 

                                                                                                                                -Laurence Overmire

Did you know that among other things, September 27th is Ancestor Appreciation Day?

Genealogy is one of my many interests. I'm fairly confident it started out of a need to know more about my maternal grandfather. He died 25 days before my mom was born. Unlike her older siblings, she never got to be held by the man whose voice she no doubt heard, but can't remember. He died putting up an antennae on the roof of their home so that when time came for Mom to be born, my grandma could contact him. My mom, in utero, got to experience all the trauma my grandma felt losing her husband. To this day, Mom can't hear "Taps" without breaking down.  

My grandpa was in the Army, and most of the pictures my mom has are from his time in the service. 

All we had to go on were a few photos, and the little my grandma could tell us. I combed every scrap of detail I could out of those pictures, and each new little bit of information was a huge revelation for us. 

My grandpa was in the military (yay! records!) BUT stationed only at Army Security Agency posts (Read: top secret eavesdropping bases). Drat.

We thought we would attempt to find people who served with him, and  often heard "Oh, he was an MP? Yeah, I tried to avoid them." Double drat.

When we filled out the paperwork and attempted to get his records from the military, we were told that they didn't have anything- that his records were probably lost in a fire at one of their facilities. (Given the nature of his service, we're a bit skeptical about this.) 

In an attempt to consolidate the information and find more records, I signed up with Ancestry. And the rest, as they say, is history. In this case, that phrase is actually true. SO much history. Of course I didn't stop with my grandpa. I branched out and even added John's family tree to mine. (His is way more fun because he has roots in Scotland, but I'm not bitter.) *Cough* And I've learned so many things about my family and where we came from, and about John's family and their past. And I'm able to share these things with our girls and give them insight into their collective family history. 

I've gone so far down the ancestry rabbit-hole that when I saw this meme I busted out laughing because, hey- it's true! 

As I reflect on my 4 year membership with Ancestry, I see there are 666 people (apparently, I need to add one more ASAP) on my tree. 

And the person who started it all, Sergeant 1st Class Wesley Lemuel Johnson? Well, the facts are just as sparse as when we started. One bonus could be that we now have a semi-accurate timeline of his deployments, which we added to his wedding and births of his kids. 

But I will never forget the day we found the video. You see, my grandpa was present at the dedication ceremony for an outpost in Asmara, Eritrea. Kagnew Station was dedicated in May of 1953, and my grandpa was chosen to stand guard next to the official plaque. My mom has had this photo for years: 

Wax (right)

One day, I stumbled across a video of the ceremony on Youtube. 4 minutes and 29 seconds. I watched, breathless, waiting to see if I could catch a glimpse of my grandpa, hope sinking as the seconds ticked by. Then... at 3:22.... there he was. For 11 seconds. He moved. He was alive. I remember my excitement as I frantically passed it on to my Mom, who promptly sent it to her siblings. 

11 seconds. But how precious and dear they are in all their grainy glory. 11 seconds of life! And not possible without all the scrutinizing and analyzing and zooming in photos to try and decipher patches. Without those frustrating and often fruitless searches, I wouldn't have known where to look. 

It started with a photograph.

You know how they say a picture is worth a thousand words? I am endlessly thankful for the pictures my Mom (and her siblings) share. Because without them, we wouldn't have this:

I may not have many "facts" about my grandpa, but this I know. He loved my grandma. He came to know Jesus and was baptized in the Pacific Ocean. He served his country and he provided for his family. And his last act on earth was one of love and care for my Mom, who never heard the words but can't doubt the action. 

Someday, on the other side of Heaven, my Mom will finally get to be held by the hands that gave their life loving her. 

Just like Jesus.

And I can promise, that moment will last infinitely more than 11 seconds.