On many occasions, blog inspiration comes from the events of the day/week at FWL. Today, there were plenty of topics which could happily have taken the limelight. In fact, some which could have unhappily hit the headlines as well. Our thoughts are with those in Brussels today and we have been grateful to hear from our genealogy colleagues to know that they (and their families) are safe and well. The internet is a wonderful thing…. not only in our line of work but also to keep in touch with people and events quickly when the need arises.
The inspiration from this blog came from a friend of mine, Rachael Shall0e-Cooper, who wrote on the same topic earlier today. Pertinent when people have lost their lives today…. However, my take on the subject is wildly different from Rachael’s! We met (on Facebook) via a mutual friend initially and then met in person at the Business Networking Show last year (in Wolverhampton). She is an expert on social media and marketing – take a look at her website! She wrote What will you leave behind? which resonated with us here at FWL. What will your legacy be when you are gone?
Each and every day, we make a difference with what we do. We put families back together. We (re-)connect people. We work magic! Regular blog readers will have read about our magic wands. We crack the uncrackable.
Every interaction is important to us. Sometimes we have to break difficult news. Research isn’t always easy. It requires a special set of skills. We are (as Rachael referred to in her blog) the Good Samaritan (although her context is a little different!). How would you like to receive our call ‘out of the blue’ to tell you that you are potentially entitled to an inheritance from a relative you are not even aware of, let alone know! It would be great if we could choose the families who benefit, but that’s not our remit. The law is the law and in the realms of intestacy, it’s clear as crystal. In the last week, we’ve had some conversations with potential beneficiaries which have been less than congenial but other discussions with entitled individuals when clearly the inheritance (however small) will be enormously beneficial to their lives.
We hope to leave a legacy to families. Their heritage, financial inheritance and more….. Tracing the important people in their lives, for whatever reason. To make a positive difference.
Other people in today’s society appear to wish to leave a different kind of legacy. “No one is safe, not here…. not anywhere in Europe”, say the idiots who are claiming responsibility for today’s attacks in Brussels. At the time of writing, 31 people have died. For what. That’s no legacy.
Let’s fill the internet with positive legacies.
