Busy Reflection

Dear Readers,

This past week I have been preparing a research report and compiled lineage to be submitted to ICAPGen to start the process of becoming a professional genealogist. I noticed that I have been getting a little depressed lately; I believed it was because of my workload, but after a few moments of reflection, it is a little more complicated than that. The research project I have been working on revolves around the life of Emma (Rock) Condick, a woman who practiced wet-nursing in Victorian England. Her life before and after nursing was very different than our way of life. She was born into a poor family. Her father worked hard for everything they had, and her mother died when she was very young. Emma left her household by 1851 to work in London, to help her household thrive. She married in 1852 to a poor man, John Joseph Condick, who never made enough money to keep his family out of extreme poverty. The first child they had was born and died in a workhouse, as well as a few other children. They only had one child survive infancy, who continued to be poor the rest of his life as well. Emma lived her life alone after her husband died, and moved from place to place trying to find work and stay out of the workhouse. By the end of her life, Emma struggled to keep going and eventually died in the Newington workhouse in 1892. This story is quite depressing, at least I think. It is hard to believe that one woman had to go through all this, but each of us have trials. Each of us go through something that makes us stronger. I believe that although Emma went through these hardships, she was able to find peace and happiness sometimes.

Cheers,
Abbie