What is it about those of us in our 50 and 60’s  that set us on a frantic but all the same enjoyable search for our near and distant relatives. Spending hours and ultimately days surfing the world wide web, pestering aunts and uncles, trips to the local library, births deaths and marriages and finally organising a trip to Kew, London to carry out research. What is my connection to all these individuals long gone from this mortal shell? At times this journey turns into an emotional roller coaster as I cast my eyes over old photos and various certificates. One can’t help wondering what their daily lives entailed. For some if not most, their struggles were in a world and culture vastly different from our own. I an confident and hopeful that my children's children will some day ask the question of where their connectedness is to the past and with ease and delight have presented to them a vast array of data that contains an invisible thread to bygone days. I trust you will enjoy looking through these web pages . David Hughes 17 April (2020)