The Good Father - Part 1

One of the biggest mysteries of my life has just been solved.

                          And I'm positively giddy about it! 

For forty-five years, there's been a "hole" in my life; I've been missing a "father." Not my real father, my dad was awesome. But I always sensed a deep loss about his father - my biological grandfather.

I always felt sorry for my dad because he didn't have his dad around. His dad left the family in a terrible way. One day he just disappeared and left my grandmother alone with their four children. They were so destitute that she almost had to put them up for adoption. By the grace of God, she managed to keep the family afloat, and later, married another man - the man I would know and love as Grandpa.

But still, I knew Grandpa wasn't related to me by blood. The abandonment of his family by my bio grandfather left a stain...a black mark on my family and a mystery in my little heart. He was never spoken about in our family, it wasn't allowed. But we whispered. My cousins and I whispered and wondered about this "bad man."

                            I've always wanted to find him.

I wanted to know about him and why he'd do such a thing, but his name's always been shrouded in bitterness. Out of respect to my grandpa, I didn't start looking until he passed away. Years ago, I got on the Ancestry.com website and came up empty.

But a few weeks ago, while researching our family roots for a homeschool assignment, I got the bug again. So Thursday night, I began the search and...I found him.

What's amazing is that through other family ancestors - ones I don't even know - I found this picture of him with his mother and father in their new car. This led me to another picture...

These are his parents, my great grandparents!

So why would I search for this "bad man?" Why would I want to know? Because I know the good father, created him, and I want to understand his story and how his life affected my own. Also, it's obvious that for some reason, he has lots of people looking for him.

       What about you? Are you searching for a lost someone in your own family?

Family History Tip: Using technology sites like Ancestry.com can save you valuable time and jump start your research. They have a 14-day free trial offer and in just 3 days, I've found over 45 relatives I didn't know existed.

"I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty." 2 Corinthians 6:18