WHERE DO WE COME FROM - AUNTY?

[Frank Daniel]

As a kid I was always intrigued by our ancestry.
We, that is me and Jimmie, grew up believing that we were Irish.
We still believe that we are of Irish descent.
In fact, I know we are - on all four sides of the family. The Daniel name stemming from the Donalds in Ireland and further back to the MacDonalds from Scotland. (My particular mob doesn't go back that far. I put a stop to that.)
Any ring-ins in our ancestry don't count.
My Aunty Peggy, who married dad's brother Bob, claimed to be Irish all the way, but I think she had pommie in her blood and wouldn't let on.
From as far back as I can remember I was always curious to know the truth about our Irish-ness and used to enquire of old Peggy, 'Where do we come from Aunty?'
And almost as if she was expecting the question she would jump up nervously with "You're all Irish, darling" and face me and pat me on the chest with open palms and reassuringly repeat "You're all Irish, darling. Don't you worry about that! You are all Irish"
I often wondered if it was just me, or was jimmie Irish too.
She would then change the subject as quickly as possible in case I found out something that she didn't want me to know.
I asked this question of her year after year with the same result. Something didn't seem right.
I always knew Aunt Peggy was telling me a yarn.
All uncle Bob ever talked about was how he won the second world war - I didn't believe him either.
In the 1970's I was researching parts of the Daniel family and discovered a big connection with old 'Hinglan' and that a good number of them were christened in the church at Whitchurch on the eastern side of the Welsh border, (The River Wye) with many of them living in Monmouth in Wales.
When I approached old Peggy about our heritage some time later, I asked once again where we came from.
I got the age old reaction, she reached up and tapped me on the chest and told me 'You are all Irish darling. You're all Irish'.
I knew I had her this time and enjoyed my next question, "Well what about all them Daniels that came from Whitchurch in England? And as if she had feared this question all her life, she reacted almost violenty saying "No! No! It was Monmouth." and when I argued that the River Wye, the Welsh Boder was all that separated the two places, she was still fired up and stated that "It was Monmouth darling, and that's in Wales and and that's a lot closer to Ireland than it is to England."
And if that's not Irish, then I don't know what is.
As it is, the Daniel's in England and Wales were immigrants from Ireland. Thank God for that one!
Aunty Peggy turned 90 years a month ago and I wasn't invited to the birthday celebrations.
I hope she had a good day.

[Bob Pacey]

To Be sure Frank.

You just never know whats gonna fall out when you open the family closet.


Bob

[manfredvijars]

Someone said (I don't know who), "The things that live longest in our memories - never actually happened"

The sad thing is that there's nothing wrong with the Truth. This need for 'keeping up appearances' is so hollow.

Thanks for sharing Frank, there's good lessons in that story (I hope she forgives you and realises that you love her) ...