My parents, grandparents and great grandparents lived during a time when their relatives lived in the same neighborhood. There were relatives next door, on the same street and around the corner! The environment was such that not only did their parents reprimand them, but the neighborhood did as well because they were your relatives!
In my generation, everyone literally lives around the world. My sister lives in Florida, my brother in Illinois, and a nephew in Singapore! Today, there is no reprimanding someone else’s child, you must keep your hands to your self! My generation may not have families that live close, but does that really matter when we have social media?
Social Media Images
I love social media! It’s part of my life, and I don’t know what I would do without it! When I talk social media, I am referring to Facebook, Tumblr, Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube and Twitter. These are all sites that are good options for spreading the word about family history and genealogy. I get the most feedback on Facebook, and hardly any on the other sites. But that’s ok. I post anyway. 🙂
I never had a Pinterest account until recently. On Pinterest, I have a Between The Dashes family history and genealogy page. I was surprised to find so many others with Pinterest accounts where they share tips and freebies on genealogy.
As you know, I blog about my family history, genealogy, recipes, and travel. I love social media for the following reasons:
- I can stay connected to my family as if I was visiting their home. With my smart phone, I can use Facebook, Skype, Face Time, Messenger, take photos, and upload videos of the family – almost real-time!
- I can capture history in the making and add to my family tree as it happens. I can even connect my Ancestry account to my family’s Facebook pages, and as photos change on Facebook, I can capture it. It does require some manual intervention to capture more than profile changes.
- I can choose to get notified every time someone I’m tracking posts on social media. This can be distracting, especially as your followers grow! My brother and nephew have more than 4000 followers each! Can you imagine the pings they get all day long!
- I can capture videos, record interviews, edit and share 24 hrs a day, seven days a week! This ability is awesome! In the past we had still photos or copies of documents. Now you can add video, interviews, and actual examples of your family sharing their history. I just love it!
- I can use social media to find a relative. There are many options here. Post what you know about your lost relative, encourage sharing, and you will get feedback.
Social media is a powerful tool so make sure you are taking advantage of this resource to capture what’s happening “Between The Dashes”!
You can connect with me via social media at:
Between The Dashes
Between The Dashes 