Serendipity

It didn't occur to me until later.

Last night I entered obituaries into my database. I got to the last one I'd found and remembered that it didn't quite fit my profile: Not a cousin; Not born in Millard County. But he is related. I'd decided to just put the obit in his notes and leave it at that.I found him already in the file, with the correct spouse. I also found that he wasn't linked to his parents, who were already in the file. So, I linked him up. Pasted the obituary in his notes, then updated his record and the source list. I also put a source citation in his parents', spouse's and daughter's notes. I then linked the photo from the obituary to his record in the database.

Later as I sat thinking of the tasks of my day, I remembered when I'd copied his obituary Monday: I hadn't looked for his record in my database. Instead, I had recognized his mother's name, found her in the database, noticed that he wasn't listed as a child and had decided to copy the obit anyway, even though it didn't fit the profile.

When I remembered that circumstance, I re-looked at the file. The daughter I had for the man who'd died is married to one of my cousins. I'd found their family information in a 40 year-old family group record. With the information in the obituary and a quick search in the white pages, I now have current contact information and will be able to add children and grandchildren to my cousin's record.

All because I copied an obit that didn't fit my requirements.

Serendipity.

Of course, good etiquette suggests that I wait a little while before I make my call...

How long can that itch be held in abeyance?