As someone who comes from a multiracial family, I’ve always been aware of how my different backgrounds have shaped my identity. Whether it’s jerk chicken with my Jamaican Nana or boiled cabbage with my Irish granny, I know that I wouldn’t be the woman I am today without the influences these women - and their cultures - have had on my life.
My parents always gave me the best of both worlds. Even though they both grew up in America, they made a point to take me back on vacations to both Jamaica and Ireland so that I could have a sense of who I was and where I came from. And as much fun as those vacations were, it was never enough. I still didn’t have a sense of who the individual people were whose blood runs through my veins.
So when I decided to make a family tree, it wasn’t just a fun hobby for me. I really felt that it would help me get in touch with my roots and have a better understanding of the influences that had made me who I am. And thank goodness for People Search! No one in my family - on both sides, it seems! - seems to have the faintest clue who they’re related to.
Even my grandmothers, you’d think they lived for this kind of stuff, but their memories were shot years ago. They can barely remember all of their children, much less who their grandparents were. But with people search engines, I was able to look up birth certficiates and marriage licenses from generations ago. I had always known that this information was publicly available, but I figured I’d have to visit musty government offices to track it down. Turns out, it was only a few clicks away. So I’m slowly but surely piecing together a family tapestry that describes not only who I am - but maybe even where I might be going.