Q&complAints #214: Important Ancestor

What is the most important thing ever done by one of your ancestors?

Post your answer in the LEAVE A COMMENT section below. I’m not the boss of you, though. Don’t write anything for all I care! Maybe your great-, great-, great-, great-grandpappy invented the “LEAVE A COMMENT” section.
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. . .here are my thoughts.

What is the most important thing ever done by one of your ancestors?

Henrietta Lacks. HeLa cells. To be unaware of this story, is to be unaware of the history of race relations and injustice in this country. The use of the word story, though, sells the atrocity short. Yet atrocity might be too strong a word given the immense impact on medical research Henrietta’s immortal cells continue to have 70+ years after her death. I’m relatively sure none of my ancestors have done anything nearly as instrumental to the lives of billions of people as has Henrietta Lacks—yet completely without her consent. Unlike Henrietta Lacks, I will not be immortal. I’ll have to be content with the limited decades I get on Earth. I suppose the most important thing any one of my ancestors have ever done is easy to identify. Frankly, it’s a huge multi-way tie. Equal credit goes to all those who got-it-on, bumped-uglies, put the wand in the ol’ chamber of secrets. We’re talkin’ fornication, people! After all, they wouldn’t be my ancestors if I wasn’t here. Thus, the creation of offspring naturally deserves top billing on the list of my ancestor’s most important accomplishments.

6 thoughts on “Q&complAints #214: Important Ancestor”

  1. Nice thought Sue. Besides what Sue said I think Grandpa Carfolo serving in World War I (and he wasn’t a citizen yet, serving in the war gave him citizenship). Interesting thought at this moment, never had this thought before, Grandpa didn’t speak English so not sure how he served. Never asked him, I regret. My dad serving in WWII.

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  2. I know you want me to say having you was my most important feat
    I guess it is true The births of Jimmy and You were my biggest accomplishments and raising you both to be good men our second great accomplishments

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  3. I would say the most important thing was coming to our beautiful country years and years ago. In Italy, where most of my ancestors are from, you married in your little town and stayed there. All of my grandparents left that life to come to the US. If you go to these towns you will see that there are a few last names. Which,I’m thinking, led to marriage in the same family line. You know what that leads too. Inbreeding is not a good thing. If my grandparents had not left Italy they would have married someone who was actually related to them. And I would now be a bumbling idiot.

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