• Coffee Talk
  • Paperdoll Ancestry with Lisa
  Paperdoll Journal
Paperdoll Ancestry Coffee Talk
*Please note that some of the links are affiliate links.
Paperdoll Ancestry with Lisa
​Black Family History, Ancestry, Aesthetics  & Critical Thought​ 

Motivation and Commitment

9/1/2020

Comments

 

Paperdoll Ancestry with Lisa

September 2020

Paperdoll Ancestry with Lisa
image: Paperdoll Ancestry with Lisa - Motivation & Commitment
To prepare for ancestry research, let's pause to explore motivation and commitment. I share some of my own reasons with the questions. These questions are included with my initial consultation form.

Why do you want to learn about your ancestry?

Maternal Grandparents

Paperdoll Ancestry with Lisa
image: Paperdoll Ancestry with Lisa - Grandparents
I have multiple motivations for each of my four family lines. The lineage of my grandparents. I look at the ancestral lines of my four grandparents. My maternal grandparents' ancestry are both in Virginia, Maryland, Pittsburgh and New York City. I will give examples of my ancestry questions from my relationship with maternal grandparents.

Maternal Grandfather

A big part of my commitment comes from sharing my interest in my ancestry with my maternal grandfather. While at Howard University, freshman year, we wrote letters to each other which I still have. In my letters, I would ask him about his family history and share that while in DC I would research about them. His responses were very encouraging and stick with me to this day. He also shared that his father lived in Maryland and was a preacher, although I never met him. 
​
My relationship with my Pop Pop is the glue to my spiritual life and why I am a Baptist. Growing up, I went to church with him. I fondly remember how he always carried his bible. He and my grandmother met in church. 
​
For Pop Pop: My ancestry research question is: Who was (insert name and relationship) his father? What was his life story? (what are his birth and death dates? And the story in between.)

Maternal Grandmother

Growing up, whenever I asked my maternal grandmother about where she was from she would say, “Virginia, Richmond”. Sometimes I would wonder about her light complexion, hazel eyes and straight textured hair. I would ask, what are you, Grandma? I also wanted to know because school and playmates would ask me. That always boggled me because I never saw a white woman when I saw her or felt her essence as a white person. She would answer, “I am Black”. I would say, “I know Ma but what else? Why is your skin so light?” She would move her lips close mouthed, pondering. “Lisa, I am Irish and German”. Ten year old me would roll around the floor laughing. “Ma?! How are you Irish and German”. She would say, I don’t know that's how my parents were”. Then I would ask, “Do you remember your parents?” She’d say of course I remember my parents.”

For Grandma: My maternal grandmother, my ancestry research question is: Are we really related to the Washington and Lee family in Westmoreland County, VA? As in the families of George Washington and Robert E Lee. â€‹â€‹
View this post on Instagram

UnSeen: Our Past in a New Light, #KenGonzalesDay and #TitusKaphar • #blackfamilyhistory #americanhistory #nationalportraitgallery #womeninfilm #mynpg #paperdolljournalnotes

A post shared by Lisa | Paperdoll Ancestry (@paperdollancestrywithlisa) on Jul 30, 2018 at 8:39pm PDT

Comments

    Categories

    All
    Civil War (1861-1865)
    Reconstruction Era (1865-1877)
    Revolutionary War (1775-1783)
    The Great Migration (1910-1970)

    Archives

    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    June 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018

    RSS Feed

    Paperdoll Journal Ancestry 

    ​Uncovering your family tree is possible. ~ Lisa 
    Work with me

    About Lisa Hazell

    Paperdoll Journal founder, Lisa Hazell Learn More

    Picture

Paperdoll Ancestry with Lisa

Contact info@paperdolljournal.com
 PAPERDOLL ANCESTRY  WITH LISA ©2021
  • Coffee Talk
  • Paperdoll Ancestry with Lisa