I have been spending a lot of time watching the TV show "Who Do You Think You Are?". There are several versions of it - from the UK, South Africa, Australia, the US, and a couple of other countries. The premise behind the show is very simple - take a famous person and dig into their family history to find something interesting to talk about.
Some of the episodes are a lot less interesting than others, but then some of them reveal powerful events and people in the past that really move the celebrity. Take Patrick Stewart's episode. It left him with this incredible understanding of the events that happened in his life.
Anyway, I've been thinking a lot about my own family as a result. I know a lot about my mom's side of the family. I've been surrounded by them my entire life, and I usually end up seeing some of them at least once a week. But my dad's side of the family? I know almost nothing about.
I know who my paternal grandfather is. And I know the names of an uncle and an aunt... but that's about it. My dad's mother died when he was young - possibly before his teens, and it seems as if that destroyed their family. My grandfather eventually remarried, and had two additional children, but I don't know them.
I would love to go on a show like this. Not to be on TV, but to find out about my own history. I don't have anyone I can ask these questions. And I think that's really sad.
