I have taken 1 full class about family history and genealogy and 2 almost finished classes from the International Institute for Genealogical Studies.

I’ve also been doing genealogical research since I was 12, and have loved it since then. I’m much older now, so I’ve done this for a long time.

Because of this, I have a bit of a problem with humility. I’ve become somewhat of a busy-body know-it-all. It annoys so many people. I can tell.

I do work on it and I am trying, but I must list this as a problem. Not only does it hinder my learning and research, but it hinders the enjoyment, learning, and experience-gaining others could get if I waited for them to ASK ME FOR HELP before I helped.

I also realize that if they ask me for help with something, I should help them with what they have asked me to help them with. A couple weeks back, I helped a friend by having her work under my tutelage on what I thought she should work on next instead of what she wanted to work on.

What she wanted to work on seemed like not the best thing to me, considering what I saw glaringly, as “standing out like a sore thumb,” or more important.

I need to try to remember that sometimes whenI ask for help, the helper does the same and I have rarely been grateful for their “help.” (Granted, some of the times, I have been greatly moved and have loved their perspective).

I think this may help someone who is a little bit like me.

Happy genealogy helping!