In life, one under-looked realization we are all missing is knowing where our ancestors lived and what country they claimed as their home.
For many years, I knew that I contained some German ancestry, but I did not really think about all other possibilities of where my other past relatives lived and inhabited. Due to culture and one’s identity holding such a strong importance in an individual’s life, I would strongly recommend all to wonder and perchance pursue where your blood lies.
From day to day, I meet too many people caught up in the present and vastly unconcerned with the history that contributed to where they reside today.
Many years ago, my mom became extremely interested in where her grandparents and great-grandparents were born, so she decided to start doing research through a program on the internet called Ancestry. This led here to a multitude of records that she could initially observe, learn from and start to develop a broader sense of identity in how and where her past ancestors lived.
Additionally, I am not saying that all people need to focus on finding records and other data to identify their DNA through an assortment of online websites. It may be as simple as asking your parents if they know about where their past relatives lived. For those families who seem like their lineage has permanently resided in Johnson City or another location, I find that you might be surprised where the results could lead.
Truly, there is no harm in having a knowledge of the past members of your family. In fact, it could influence you to develop a direction and plan from possibly knowing what professions and interests those ancestors of the past maintained. After I figured out more answers on where my past ancestors inhabited, it started to shape how I observed my place in the world and where I am right now in a much more organized manner with direction based simply from the knowledge of my family’s past.
Understanding one’s roots aid in the development of the identity, and I find that a familial intelligence can largely contribute to one’s understanding of their place in the world.
With studies showing the bloodline has a significant impact on the interests and passions of a future individual in a family, I find it amusing, interesting and directive to know what your forebears were doing and where they were living possibly more than a hundred years ago. It definitely makes a large difference in understanding the self.
