We could have a long philosophical discussion about why Americans are obsessed with where they come from, but I have not the time and likely neither do you. Besides, there's not enough rum or wine between us at the moment.
If you should meet my fellow Americans talking too loudly about how their family emigrated from England, Ireland, Germany, etcetera hundreds of years ago please spare them a bit of grace. The long shadow of diaspora haunts people throughout the world.
If they could survive Rome, I can survive Trumpism.
Maternal side:
When other Americans think of Germans, they look at me. Never mind that I was born here the same as the rest of them.
Two stay in Germania; one dies with Iron Crosses, the other dies near mystical spring waters in the Tyrolean Alps. A fairy tale ending, I'm sure.
The third fled for the New World during the 30 years' war giving up title and wealth in the name of friendship for Martin Luther. This is where my story begins two generations later.
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Paternal side:
LOVE IT!! Far more interesting than watching Gwyneth Paltrow on Who Do You Think You Are? Jx
ReplyDeleteThank you, Jon! Making anyone listen to your own family history too long feels akin to tying someone to a chair in the basement and forcing them to watch dozens of your family vacation photos on a projector set. LOL. Mildly intriguing but doesn't matter nearly as much to anyone else except the person associated with it.
DeleteGreat illustrations, sweetpea! "Goonies never say die" I love it! xoxo
ReplyDeleteThank you, Savannah! I love LOTR, but I also love Goonies so the fact that Sean Austin starred in both and someone thought to make this a meme is perfection! Goonies was filmed two hours away from me in Astoria, Oregon which makes it even more special to me.
DeleteOREGON W00T W00T W00T yeah buddy
DeleteHaha!! Wonderful, and I love the German anarchy.
ReplyDeleteSx
Thank you, Ms Scarlet! That is one of my favorite memes. I think you all could do something similar if you were so inclined. I'd be interested!
DeleteWait! Your hot, older brother is Josh Brolin?!? Ding dong!
ReplyDeleteP.S. Visigoth made me laugh out loud! German Anarchy set off my OCD.
Hahaha! There was a secret love child here and there so you and I could be related for all I know! Laughing at the Visigoths just proves that were not actually as boring as people presume us to be. OCD, brother you should see me deconstruct an entire freaking mountain "just so" in Minecraft!
DeleteHow Fab.
ReplyDeleteI have done my tree back to 17th century and none of them moved any further than 70 miles from ground zero.
But It's not where you start it's finish.
ReplyDeleteCrap, I'm half German. Harry Truman (the dude who chose to die on Mt. St. Helens) was a shirttail ancestor of mine; who knows. Way back our respective Germans could have crossed the prairies together. Like, in adjacent wagons or something. I assume our respective German ancestors would have been friendly. Shared sauerkraut and shit like that.