Way, way back in June 2015, David Rencher was the speaker at the WSGS/Kittitas County Gen Society’s conference. Anybody remember?

With his teaching remarks, he introduced to us the concept of “framing the problem.” And framing it correctly. He began by teasing us with, “have you a tough genealogy problem? Worried you won’t solve it in your lifetime? Do you keep doing the same-old-same-old things and wondering why you have no new conclusions or answers?”

He then explained that you must “frame the problem differently.” Simply put, how to look at the problem differently. He showed three photos of the Golden Gate bridge……

If you’re driving on the bridge, you see the bridge from that angle only. If you’re boating on the bay, you see the bridge from that angle only. And if you’re flying overhead, you will see the bridge from that angle only. 

His point with these images of the Golden Gate bridge is that, with regards to your tough genealogy problems, you’re looking at the bridge from your angle. That’s all you see. But if you were to see it from a boat or from the air, you’d have an entirely different perspective.

“To solve a tough problem,” he said, “You must frame your picture differently.” 

Towards the finale of his talk, David quipped, “I know where lots of my ancestors aren’t because I’ve looked there!”