Returning to My Roots

Shortly before leaving the US, Cecily, Janine, and I got our DNA tested. My mom had always been curious to see how much of her ancestry was Irish. To her knowledge, everyone in her family came from the Emerald Isle. I have been working on her genealogy for about two decades and haven't found anyone who wasn't from there. In fact, mom is the second generation of her family to be born in the US. The DNA test confirmed it: she's pretty much all Irish, with one or two percentage points coming from other Western European countries. I, on the other hand, am only 79% from Ireland and the British Isles with another 8% from Scandinavia, 1.5% from France and Germany, a wee 0.5% from Finland, and an even tinier 0.3% from Spain and Portugal. The markers suggest that my strongest genetic links come from County Dublin, County Kerry, and London. 

We have been in Dublin for two days now. It's been overcast and drizzly the whole time, which has been a welcome shift from the heat and dryness of the Rocky Mountains. We've crossed over the River Liffey a couple of times, stopped by Trinity College and saw the Long Hall of the Old Library, visited Dublin Castle, swung by the cathedrals, and done some sightseeing. But mostly, we've just roamed the streets. It's a fantastic town. I really enjoy being here. It makes me wonder where in this city my family lived, worked, and played. To my knowledge, we don't have a lot of information about them on this side of the Atlantic. Most of the documentation I have found pops up once they settle in New York. I'm looking forward to being here for a few more days and seeing some of the places my family lived. Maybe one of these days I'll know more about their time here. For now, I'm just going to enjoy this amazing island.