Therapy -- A Poem: "Threads Of Time" and a Song "Roots Run Deep"

One of my favorite times each day is trying to think of new ways for Artificial Intelligence to express my feelings (Heck - I'm old, I'm male, I don't do well with feelings).  Yesterday it was trying out a new AI tool and asking it to write a poem about genealogy research.  That worked pretty well, and I realized I should use the same prompt on other AI tools.  

1)  Here is the poem "Threads Of Time: A Genealogist's Quest" created by Microsoft CoPilot:

Threads of Time: A Genealogist’s Quest

Through brittle pages, worn and stained,
A family's whispers still remain.
Vital records—birth and name,
Bound within the ink-stamped frame.

A Bible’s margins, hands once traced, 

Love and loss in scribbled grace. 

Old photographs, their frozen glance, 

Echo stories of a long-lost dance.

Surname books and town’s old tales, 

Where history’s breath still prevails. 

Periodicals and churchyard stones, 

Marking fate in weathered tones.

Census ledgers, carefully scrawled, 

A life recorded, duty called. 

Military rolls, war’s long wake, 

Echoing battles fought for sake.

Immigration lines, a path well worn, 

Dreams in transit—past reborn. 

Probate files and deeds of land, 

Legacies built with careful hand.

Burial records, hush of earth, 

Mark the passage from birth to dearth. 

DNA’s strands, a coded link, 

Binding ancestors, deep in sync.

Now AI joins—its reach unbound, 

Weaving names where none were found. 

A family tree, so vast, so wide, 

With roots restored in time’s great tide.

Oh, genealogist, seeker true, 

Each thread you stitch, each clue you view, 

You raise the past, you mend the seams, 

You breathe life into history’s dreams.

2)  I asked CoPilot to create a colorful photorealistic image that reflects the poem:

I wish my desk was this organized!  Does this mean I should write books about each of the record types?  I prefer writing books about family groups.  Where is the computer?  Drat - I forgot to ask for it.

3)  With the same basic prompt, here are song lyrics to "Roots Run Deep" created by Microsoft CoPilot:

"Roots Run Deep"

(Verse 1) 

Faded pages, a name in ink, 

Buried stories, I start to think. 

Who they were, the lives they led, 

Echoes calling from the dead.

(Verse 2) 

Old photographs, a knowing stare, 

A time-worn Bible, whispers there. 

Census lines and letters traced, 

Piecing fragments into place.

(Chorus) 

Oh, roots run deep, beyond the years, 

Through joy and love, through loss and tears. 

I'm reaching back to find my way, 

The past still speaks, it knows my name.

(Verse 3) 

Ships on water, hope held tight, 

Land was promised, stars burned bright. 

Military tales of duty strong, 

A name recorded, marching on.

(Chorus) 

Oh, roots run deep, beyond the years, 

Through joy and love, through loss and tears.

 I'm reaching back to find my way, 

The past still speaks, it knows my name.

(Bridge) 

One name leads to another, 

A daughter, a son, a father, a mother. 

Their voices hum beneath the stone, 

In their footsteps, I have grown.

(Verse 4) 

DNA maps the ties we share, 

Connections forming everywhere. 

Randy builds a branching tree, 

Unlocking all that history.

(Chorus) 

Oh, roots run deep, beyond the years, 

Through joy and love, through loss and tears.

 I'm reaching back to find my way, 

The past still speaks, it knows my name.

(Outro) 

So I’ll keep searching, page by page, 

Through every faded, worn-out age. 

The bloodline sings, the truth remains,

In every heart, we live again.

CoPilot said:  I hope this captures the heart of genealogy for you, weaving history, identity, and the technology that keeps the past alive.  Yep!!

It's funny that the AI tools seem to know me better than I know myself.  

I also had ChatGPT4, Grok 3, Gemini 2.0 Flash, and Claude 3.7 Sonnet write poems and song lyrics.  They are all different from the same prompt and maybe I'll share one or two in a later post.  

4)  The song?  Here it is (from Suno.com):  https://suno.com/song/313936ff-6efe-423f-a930-31ed3cbc13ce

[Note:  The free Suno.com website stopped providing MP4 videos for free, and now I have to download an MP3 audio file and the link above.]  

5)  This is therapy for me.  I need it.  It makes me think.  It satisfies my soul.  It reflects my current purpose in life.  Honoring my ancestors is a mission.  

I wish I was this creative, but I'm an aerospace engineer and genealogist, not a poet or lyricist.  Perhaps my AI-created poems, songs and family stories will be my legacy for my family, or maybe inspire other family historians to honor their ancestors. 

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Links to my blog posts about using Artificial Intelligence are on my Randy's AI and Genealogy page.  Links to AI information and articles about Artificial Intelligence in Genealogy by other genealogists are on my AI and Genealogy Compendium page.

Copyright (c) 2025, Randall J. Seaver

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