98 years ago one of my great grandpas crossed the border at Laredo, TX, heading toward San Antonio. He would eventually end up in Chicago and become a naturalized citizen in the 1950s.
Most if not all public libraries have access to Ancestry.com and HeritageQuest, and genealogy is an evergreen topic. As time ticks forward, Census records are released 72 years after an enumerator scribbled name, age, nationality and such on a massive ledger. In 2022, the records for 1950 were released. I search periodically, hoping more records have been added or indexed, hoping to find connections lost through adoption or immigration. Draft cards, voter rolls, and yearbooks sometimes yield signatures, photos, and addresses.
Since last year I’ve often opened Microsoft Translator on my phone to communicate with Venezuelan asylum-seekers who are copying their passports, IDs and asylum paperwork because I never became fluent in Spanish. I’ve picked up imprimir, copia, correo, cuántas páginas, gratis. It’s not nearly enough, but it’s something.