Our family genealogy started out as a small hobby and has taken on a life of its 
own.  
For some time now, during my research I have vicariously drifted through the places 
my forbears inhabited, albeit dimly, in faded and scratched sepia tones. Always I 
return to where it all began, for me, at least! There, at Mile-End Cottage, off South 
Road, Peterhead, across from Peterhead Lido. Up a long rough gravel path, betwixt 
fields of waving corn and calm eyed cattle, and rambling vegetable gardens planted by 
Grandpa, Dad and Uncle Bob. Ivy covered ancient walls of stone, and Gran's white 
roses and ramblers, with their unforgettable fragrance, mingling with the scent of 
honeysuckle.
Home of the sweetest strawberries I have ever tasted. and the best new potatoes - 
Golden Wonders and Kerr's Pinks, I think!
Gran and Grandpa were "transplants", she from the softly beautiful Borders area
(Selkirk) and he from the glorious Ayrshire countryside. Gramps was born in 
Colmonell, and the family lived for generations in the area - Maybole, Kirkoswald, 
and the surreally beautiful coast area, with golden sun kissed views across to Arran 
in the summer, or perhaps through veils of mist in in the cooler weather. Could one 
ever forget the taste of wild brambles picked on a quiet Ayrshire lane in summer?