As
I’ve mentioned before; I am Irish.
My
family is hardcore Irish. We’ve traced out lineage all the way back to which
little hut our family came from on the island. My family and I visited Ireland
when I was in the eighth grade. It was both amazing and frustrating. Ever tried
driving on the wrong side of the road for the first time? Irish people have
very strange definitions of highways. Namely that they are narrow and winding
and only have two lanes.
Anyway,
visiting Ireland was very important for my family because my family left the
island after the famine. Just so you know what that means, it means my family
stuck it out through the famine and tried to keep their farm up and running.
But when the famine ended, my family was so in debt that the they lost the
farm. Their last option was to travel to America to find a new place.
So,
that’s the story I have been told. My family wanted to visit our homeland just
to see what we were missing. The answer is really awful food (harsh, but true)
and a beautiful country and culture. The nice thing is that a lot of Americans
share the Irish heritage, so there are always plenty of people out here to
connect with.
Do I
feel more deeply connected with my culture because I visited the country? A
little bit. Do I feel like I’ve taken an important step in self-discovery by
seeing Ireland? Yes.
Challenge
to my Readers:
Visit
the land of your family at least once. Just to see where you come from. And if
you don’t know where you’re from, visit them all.
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