52 Ancestors - Week 2 Origins

WEEK 2 – ORIGINS

By Cynthia Keefer Patton

or·i·gin

/ˈôrəj(ə)n/

noun

plural noun: origins---the point or place where something begins, arises, or is derived. "the name is Norse in origin".  Similar words: beginning; start; origination; genesis; birth; dawning; dawn; emergence.

 

“Where do you come from?” That is a question we have all been asked. Where do I come from? I was born in Atlanta, Georgia in 1958. So, I am from Atlanta. I am from the South.

My parents were Clyde Andrew Keefer (born 1 Jul 1926 and died 28 Mar 2023) and Dolores Jean Mahanna (born 15 Mar 1933 and died 14 Dec 2016). He was born in Connellsville, Pennsylvania and she in Washington, Pennsylvania. So, I guess I come from my parents. And I come from Pennsylvania roots.

I come from America. That is the answer I gave when I was a Soldier and serving overseas after 9/11. I am American, I come from America.

But many, many years before I was born, my ancestors came from many places in Europe. Ireland, England, Germany, Norway, and Sweden. So “we” come from Europe.

Since doing genealogy for over forty years, I think I have come to the conclusion that we are all so connected, that we have shared life experiences, shared hometowns, shared belief systems, and shared DNA segments.

But aside from all that, there is no one else on earth who is like me. Who is me. I am an original, the definition of which is “present or existing from the beginning, first, or earliest OR not a copy or imitation.”

So, my conclusion is that my origin is EVERYTHING that I come from.