I am a family researcher & genealogists spending most of my time in central areas of Kentucky - Hardin, LaRue, Hart, Green, Taylor, Washington, Nelson, Marion, Boyle, Jefferson, Oldham, Henry, Trimble, Shelby, Carroll... as these areas are where some of my ancestors lived before me. Many years ago I was spending the research hours at courthouses, cemeteries, & libraries. Then the internet arrived and all the family tree programs and genealogical websites, like this one, became available and that was a great tool to use for research without having to leave home. In more recent years the DNA app sites came onto the scene adding another means to grow & confirm your roots! I enjoy genealogy in many forms - books, internet, newspapers, etc., It never gets boring. There are so many avenues of research to explore. As I learn more about my ancestors of the Revolutionary War (such as Henry Shofner of Attilla) or John Lewis Elliott (of Howardstown/Gleanings) or Captain John Price (of Prices) I become more interested and knowledgeable about history. I find an answer and then another question pops up. It is a never ending, ongoing puzzle ... a continual process of putting the pieces of evidence together. It is a healthy place to exercise the brain and generally a safe place for the mind of the curious. Genealogical efforts are a practice of remembering, cherishing and preserving. In my efforts, including those at cemeteries, I am trying to do just that! We are seeing the farmland disappear, the barns are falling down, the old farm houses too far gone to save are sitting vacant, and the old cemeteries are unkept. Headstones are disappearing as the years go by in many graveyards. I feel strongly we must do what we can to share correctly what is there before it is gone... even if not by the professional, hire-an-expert way, that most cannot afford anyway. I have at times been a researcher for hire but that was years ago. Now-a-days I still get to cemeteries, I work through the thousands of DNA kinfolk connections to add them/confirm them on the tree, I continually make adjustments to the family tree, I spend hours reading old newspapers, etc.., Most of my experiences with people along the way have been pleasant and I have learned from the bad experiences. From sharing photographs I learned they can be claimed by others and mislabeled/people misidentified. I had a very bad experience with the Civil War Soldier photograph of John Lewis Elliott. Years ago he was incorrectly identified as his father Squire Elliott by someone I had shared the photograph with. Upon the web this error quickly multiplied. The website owners would not assist in correcting the problem. I learned to copyright my photographs .. and identify who is in them on the photo before it goes to the web. I have learned about photo courtesy. Ask before taking photographs. Give credit to where the photograph came from. I became more careful in how I shared family photographs in person or on the web. I have also learned that there are bad apples/critcs of my cemetery work. I received a very critical & cruel note from ____ after I shared photographs from my last visit to Little Mount. And sometimes it is troubling when I know ancestors are wrong on sites (such as John Lewis Elliott's parents on this site) and ____ won't change it or even acknowledge it is being debated. But back on a positive note? I'm grateful to volunteers, fellow researchers, genealogists before me and their work, contacts who are positive and thankful for the work I have done or information/photographs I have shared. I'm grateful to the property owners that fence off the old cemeteries to keep the cattle from walking over the family graveyards in the fields (such as the Redman's in White City & Little Mount). I'm grateful to those who were always kind about allowing me to visit the cemeteries in the middle of their cow pastures. I'm grateful for the caretakers who keep the cemeteries mowed or pick up brush and falling trees. I'm grateful to helpful, friendly library staff I have known through the years (such as Louisville Free Public Library). Sometimes disagreements over connections /relations or perhaps a brick wall can be a bit unsettling? I am grateful I'm learning to pause, to step away, take my time and come back when I am calm and ready to start a fresh. Happy digging to you in your research work!