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By Debra DuPree Williams @DDuPreeWilliams

When I began my genealogy journey almost thirty years ago, computers were not what they are today. We didn’t have Facebook nor did we have Family Tree in the capacity in which it exists today. That’s not to say that we didn’t have access to distant files, but other avenues of research and making connections were not as readily available as they are today.

I’m a member of no less than twelve genealogical groups. All of those are online. Back in 1983 when Ancestry first launched, they didn’t have anywhere near the number of files that are available to us today. And DNA testing was not even on the horizon. That began in earnest in 2000 when Family Tree became the first company to offer direct-to-consumer testing for genealogy purposes. In 2019, we cannot imagine not having these vehicles at our disposal. As the old saying goes, we’ve come a long way, baby.

PC or NOT PC? That is the Question

By Debra DuPree Williams @DDuPreeWilliams

One thing with which writers must occasionally deal is a new computer. That was my circumstance this week. For months my PC has been giving signs of crashing—best to deal with the issue now than to wait until I have to scramble to retrieve precious files. One thing I had done was to get an external hard drive and a thumb drive, two backups for my work. Plus, I have an editor who has stored my completed novel, on her computer. Thanks to her, big time.

 

Our son drove from Raleigh to the Asheville area to assist with the decision of what to get. He is quite the expert when it comes to all things tech. Believe me when I tell you that he did not get that gene from his Mama. Before his arrival, he did a lot of research about what I may need—this after asking a myriad of questions regarding my use of anything I do on my computer.

Conquering the Curves

By Debra DuPree Williams @DDuPreeWilliams

How often have you set out with a goal in mind, a destination, if you will, and things just didn’t work out as planned? Maybe it's a big goal such as becoming a published author. Maybe it's just a nice drive not far from home. We had that happen to us today. 

When we left our home, we had planned on a leisurely day of driving through the countryside to take photos of churches, old barns, and anything that caught our attention.

I still don’t know my way around our area so J drives everywhere we go. He likes to joke and tell everyone he’s driving Miss Debbie. Well, he is, for sure.

He asked what I had in mind and he made some suggestions. I just answered with that sounds fine, where ever you think as I don’t know one direction from another. So off we went.

The Structure is Gone, But Christ is Alive

By Debra DuPree Williams @DDuPreeWilliams

My heart plummeted to the pit of my stomach. Breath caught in my throat, unsure of my intent—breathe in or breathe out? Tears pooled in my eyes. Like the rest of the world, my first reaction to the fire which consumed Notre Dame de Paris was shock . . . then utter and complete heartbreak.

This magnificent structure, built to the glory of God, almost one-thousand years old.

Gone.

Once in a Lifetime

Like many of the citizens of the world, I have visited this beautiful cathedral. But unlike most, I have had the honor and experience of being a member of a Sunday morning worship service choir. It was an experience of a lifetime.

Our choir, Independent Presbyterian Church in Birmingham, Alabama,  wore bright red cassocks topped with white cottas. The women wore red beanies. We were a high Presbyterian church in which ritual was paramount to each service. The music was glorious. Thus, we were invited to sing Sunday mass in Notre Dame.

As I watched the flames leap to the sky, the smoke rise like a million incense pots gone awry, my mind took me back to that year, that day, when forty-five choir members gathered in the choirstall of this world-famous cathedral. It was so many years ago, yet I will never forget it.

My husband in the dark jacket. Friend, Jodi Pankey facing camera.

Between the services, we were taken by church staff to an area the average tourist will never see—levels beneath the sanctuary, where only staff are allowed. They fed us an assortment of breads and other things and they had Coca-Cola in bottles.

Cardinale

The priests walked up to many of the female members as we made our way from the sanctuary to this underground room, and pointed to our beanies proclaiming, Cardinale. Such a fun, amazing, spirit-filled day. 

When we finished the major work we had prepared, Cochereau, the organist at the time, who was on the antiphonal organ in the upper rear balcony, came over the speaker at the front organ where our choirmaster was seated and said, Bon! Bon! Bon! High praise, no doubt.

The structure may not be standing after almost a thousand years, but the memories will live with us forever. The church building can be rebuilt, but the church is the people—the body of believers who gather to worship God week after week, millennial after millennial.

The Lord is Risen!

Here is the truth. A fire may destroy a building, even one as old and as honored as Notre Dame. But nothing, nothing on earth or even from the fires of Hell can destroy the Hope that is ours in Christ. (Read Romans 8:38-39). He is alive now and He will reign forever. (Read Exodus 15:17-18). Death couldn’t destroy Him. (Read I Corinthians 15:20-26). As Easter Sunday approaches, let us rejoice and sing praises to the Living God. The tomb is empty! The Lord is Risen. Hallelujah!

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A Living, Breathing Heirloom

By Debra DuPreeWilliams @DDuPreeWilliams

About a year ago, I had the sudden and startling realization that a treasured family heirloom, my great grandfather's watch, had inadvertently been discarded. I won’t go into particulars about how this happened as that is not relevant to the story. Suffice it to say, it is no longer with us, but by now, one-hundred-fifty-seven years after his death, I doubt that his watch would still be ticking.

The pain of the loss of such a treasure was so great that I couldn’t bring myself to even think about it. I hadn’t even shared this information with my husband . . . until today. 

Dreams Do Come True

By Debra DuPree Williams @DDuPreeWilliams

When is the last time you thought about your hopes and dreams? Have they come to be? Are you still pursuing them?

I’m here to tell you—don’t ever give up on those dreams. You never know when a door will open and all you will have to do is walk through. That happened to me this year and it recently happened for one son.

Trust and Prepare

We may think that we are  too old or too young, not qualified, not whatever enough. But you must remember that God has the last word. If you trust in him with all your heart and you do your best to prepare yourself for your dreams, then you sit back and watch God at work.

Technology Challenged? You're Not Alone

By Debra DuPree Williams @DDuPreeWilliams

For a while now, I’ve been having hints that my computer was on its last legs. Never a good thing for anyone, but for a writer—it can be disastrous, especially if your work hasn’t been backed up.

Now, I have an external hard drive that backs up my files every night. I also have a thumb drive that, if I remember to do so, has my files on it. Problem is, I can never remember how to use the thing and I rarely remember to use it in the first place.

Here I am today, working away on things I need to get done this week. My husband waves goodbye to me through our front porch window which opens to my office. I am about to go to my WIP (work in progress) to do a few more edits. Now, hubby had just helped me put other files on a flash drive he had and then I emailed them off to where they needed to be. I told myself, Get him to help you put your files on your thumb drive. But, I got wrapped up in what I was doing and simply forgot.