Week 52 – Me, Myself and I

 

Over the past fifty-one weeks, I’ve shared not only stories of my ancestors, but often how I was affected by their lives.  Tracing the Anthony family, you learned how they set me on the path as a genealogist – constantly giving me encouragement to keep seeking their stories as document after document kept materializing.  The Cooke’s and the Warren’s shared the crossing of the Mayflower and I became aware just how deep my American roots are.  

After I started on this year-long quest, I discovered my Cox family had settled, in what would later become, Philadelphia, which incidentally is my favorite city. The Patton and Hillegas families introduced me to the Revolutionary War and rekindled the patriotism that I’ve always felt, and how that caused me to devote a good portion of my life as a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution. The Ayers, Cash, Davis, Echols, Haley, and Prince families gave me insight into the deep south, both the good and the bad, and how we must learn from our past history.  Then the Powers/Patton and Ditmore/Pennington families, who all came from completely different backgrounds and geographical areas to end up in the same place at the same time, in order that I could be here today. My life has been shaped by every single person in my family, in one way or another. I am the culmination of them all.

As the topic this week is Me, Myself and I, my story wouldn’t be complete unless I shared with you about those who have come after me - three exceptional women who were also created by all the relatives I’ve told you about.  My whole heart. They are not my ancestors, however they are the ancestors of my grandchildren.

My oldest daughter has my grandma Ditmore’s hair.  It is thick and dark.  At first glance, this is what you notice.  My sister says she is Angelina Jolie beautiful (I’ll let you decide for yourself).  She will kill me for telling you, but she is a former beauty queen – selected as Mrs. Tennessee. What you don’t immediately see is that she is also brilliant.  I don’t mean she’s pretty smart - I mean gifted and talented, creative, member of Mensa, brilliant. From the time she was born, she had a book in her hands. I don’t think she slept through the night until she was … well, she’s probably never slept through the night. Along with a flashlight hidden under the covers, books opened up the world to her. She and I are the undisputed Trivial Pursuit champions in our family (unless we’re playing with her husband, who changes the rules to suit him and his team).  After serving in the US Navy for eight years, she became a stay-at-home mom as her children grew, while following her naval officer husband from duty station to duty station.  Her daughter became a competitive figure skater so she put her creative talent to use designing and hand making skating costumes, which she turned into a full-time business.  Now that her youngest child is in college, she has gone back to the books, completing yet another degree, this one in Cyber Security.  Recently, she was selected as a semi-finalist in the 2024 Presidential Management Fellow Program which is a leadership development program for advanced degree holders, administered by the United States Office of Personnel Management. The scholars of the Anthony family have passed on the love for books and learning to both she and ME.

My middle daughter is the shortest member of our family, by a lot. My Grandma Powers was short (as well as my dad) and I’m sure that’s where she gets it. Our family has quite a repertoire of short jokes readily available.  What my daughter lacks in height, she makes up for with her BIG personality.  She is the one who hates conflict, can please everyone, and is the social butterfly. She was born in August, so she was always the youngest in her class. While she had to work hard for her grades in school, her exceptional leadership qualities made her succeed. When in middle school, she decided she wanted to play basketball (remember, she’s short). Lo and behold, she earned a spot on the team, but she really was not good at all. When I asked how she managed to make the team, the coach told me that she had never seen a kid with more determination.  If the rest of the players had half the desire and drive as my daughter, they’d win every game.  These same qualities have stayed with her for her entire life. When her first born daughter was a baby, she took an entry level position with Bell Helicopter in Fort Worth. While working full-time, she attended college at Texas Woman’s University, as she climbed her way up the corporate ladder.  Today, she is the Director of Business Strategy and Industrial Participation at Bell Flight. Her job has taken her to essentially every corner of the planet. All this as she raised four daughters, one with special needs. The incredible work ethic that my dad possessed, has been handed down to my daughter and MYSELF.

My youngest daughter is named for her Estonian great-grandmother on her dad’s side. I think many of her traits come from those Eastern European ancestors. One exception would be her stubborn streak.  As the youngest in the family, it was inevitable that she would have that rebellious nature, thinking she was as grown up as her sisters and that she was more mature than she was. Needing to prove just how grown up she was, after high school, she headed off to New Orleans, all on her own, to attend college.  She found a job and an apartment that she paid for herself, while attending classes. While she didn’t finish school there, she did become an adult. It did take a while for her to determine her path in life, but once she did, there was no looking back.  She became a mother later in life than either her sisters or I and devoted her whole self to motherhood. She has been a soccer mom, a baseball mom, a basketball mom, a softball mom, a volleyball mom, a band mom, a football mom, a homeroom mom. She is also a high school English teacher, and dance/drill team director, continuing to “mother” her students and loving them with the same strong arm, open mind, and tender heart that she’s shown to her own children. From as early back as our family history can be documented, the strong women and loving mothers from whence we come have continued to pass on their tenaciousness, and independent spirit, to both she and I.

These three are, indeed, the greatest gifts I’ve ever received. While I would love to take credit for them, I know that they were shaped, just like I was, by all those ancestors whose DNA we share.

I hope you’ve enjoyed at least a few of my #52Ancestors posts.  Some of the stories have been hard to write, and sometimes words just flowed.  Although I took this fifty-two-week challenge intending it to be lighthearted, easy, and fun, when it came down to it, it became a self-reflection. I learned a lot about myself through reminiscing about those who came before me (and going through endless drawers of documents and genealogical notes). In my family, I can clearly see tendencies, or looks, that I know have come to these individuals through some long-gone grandparent, aunt, or uncle, but I never really noticed before now.  The most significant thing I’ve realized (although I’ve always known it) is just how important the histories of our ancestors must continue to be told and I must ensure these memories and stories are passed on to the next generations.  So, I will leave you with this. It is my hope that my effort to tell you about my ancestors will encourage you to do the same. Write the stories, remember the people, and make certain your memories are passed down. And last, but not least - Be the things you loved most about those people who have come before you.

Merry Christmas to all…and to all, a good night