Discovering Myself Through My Past: Bucket List Item: Research my family Genealogy

How do you define family?

I have always been fascinated by my family history, but it was recently re-kindled.  Have you watched or heard of the television show "Who do you think you are?".  It was a show that aired for several weeks and was sponsored by Ancestry.com.  The show featured a celebrity and follwed them on their journey to discover their roots, to find out where their familes came from.  I know some of you won't be surpirsed by this.....but every week I watched, I cried!  It was very moving to watch these individuals travel to the cities and countries where their families began.  It was emotional to see their outlook and ideas about who they were change as they discovered the hidden family secrets.

I have always been pretty open about discussing my family history;  the good, the bad, the ugly and the down right crazy (yes I mean straight jacket crazy). I have been told I could probably write a book about my mother's side of the family and it would be a pretty good read.

The combination of the television show "Who do you think you are?" and the death of my Godfather Joe was my inspiration to embark on my journey to learn about my family and where it all began.

My parents dread when I call to ask questions.  Okay....my mom just says things like "You are making my head hurt." and my dad just says things like "I don't want to talk about this, here is your mother."  I just find all of the twists and turns interesting.  I have never felt embarrassed about anything my family members have done or been involved with, I have only embraced them for who they are and worked through any issues I have.  You don't choose your family members afterall!

I began the journey knowing an outline of my family tree and where we believed our families began.  Little did I know I would uncover things nobody seemed to know.  For example...my Aunt Mary was my Grandfather's 1/2 sister, My Great Grandfather Michaelangelo Serratore was remarried after his wife Bettina left him to marry his cousin and apparently my dad has had an idea of who his birth father was since he was a small child. 

Here is a little back history.......

My mom is the oldest child of four.  She and her brother John were adopted and her brother Roger and sister Michelle were born into the family.  I never had an opportunity to meet my Grandmother Eleanor.  I hear she was something to be reckoned with.  My mother and uncle John were adopted from the Home for Unwed Mothers in Biddeford Maine.  Try finding information about closed adoptions.....it is NOT an easy task and I have not been successful so far.  If you know anything about the typical roles children of an alcoholic play, then you have an insight to my mom and her three siblings.  I even used them as a case study for my family therapy class in college.

My dad is an only child and never knew his birth father.  Of course that is what we all thought until I began digging around on Ancestry.com and asking questions.  Apparantly my dad believes that his birth father is a guy who owned a pizza shop that his mother worked for.......we have no proof...but seeing I have nothing else to go on, I am running with it!  He was raised by his mother Helen (I took her name as my confirmation name.), his grandparents and his cousin Joe (my Godfather who was more like a Grandfather to me and a father to my dad).  Until recently I had never seen a picture of Grandma Helen.  Thanks goes to Helina for digging through her old photos and sharing them with m.

My parents live in the house where my father grew up.  I think it is so cool to think about the fact that someone in our family has lived in that house for over 70 years.  They have two children:  me and my sister Tasha.  If you ask them, they will say that my two uncles and my aunt are more like their children than siblings because of the role my mom took on after my grandmother passed away.  They met on a blind date back in high school.  My dad litterally came from the wrong side of the tracks and my mom was the daughter of a business owner.  They got married on January 5, 1964.  I won't say they haven't had their ups and downs, but I will say that even through their differences, I can see that they love each other.  Lately things have been difficult and it is nice to hear my dad say things like "I am lucky that your mother married me."  and "I don't know what I would do without your mother." 

I don't tell them enough, but they are two of the most amazing people I know.  They have sacrificed so many things for my sister and I.  One I think about them, I think about Ani Difranco's song 32 Flavors.  There is one line that resonates with me....."Both my parents have taught me about goodwill....."  Paul and Janine Smutney are giving and have big hearts and I am proud they are my parents.

Anyway....I have been able to trace my maternal Great Grandmother's ancestry back to Arcadia and France.  I have been able to trace my paternal Grandparent's ancestry back to Galicia, Poland. Apparantly Galicia was a part of Austria at one point.  My next step is going to be submitting a DNA test to Ancestry.com and having them map my DNA to see how many connections I can find all over the world.

As I find more information, I will post more.  It is a cool feeling to have a sense of belonging to the bigger picture, to know that there were many generations before me that paved the path for me to be how I am today.  I also want to thank those of you who have become family to me not based on genetics or marriage, but by being the people I turn to when times are tough and things are good and the people I knwo I can be myself with no matter what! (Mr. Mr., P, Jim, Shi, Heifer and many more). 

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Dad, Mom, Tasha and me