Yesterday's sermon yesterday brought tears to my eyes. He spoke about Father's Day and a father that won't be spending it with his young children. A few weeks ago a pizza delivery man was sent to deliver a pizza to a military base here in Brooklyn. While there, the security guard called ICE on him. This man was the sole support of his family. He worked long , hard hours to earn enough money to support his family in a job, mind you, that all those who are busy complaining that the illegals are stealing jobs wouldn't be caught dead doing. He has never broken the law, yet now here he is locked up in a facility with hardened criminals while his family struggles to survive. His only crime was falling in love and not returning to his country, but he had already begun the process to become a citizen. That should count for something, but not in today's America. A GoFund me page has been set up to help the young mother, a citizen, and her children.
And then he spoke of the heartbreak of seeing children ripped from their mother's arms as they seek asylum and placed into detention camps. Never, in my 71 years of life, did I ever think I would see this in America. This is NOT my America. This is NOT, the America that welcomed my Irish, English, Dutch, and German immigrant ancestors. I cry when I think of those poor children, and the trauma in their young lives that will stick with them forever. The other day they were using the Bible to justify this horrible treatment of young innocents, but that backfired and now they are blaming the Democrats. Well, if that's true, why wasn't this happening during all those years we had a Democratic president?
And now that I have my dander up, I'd like to share with you a wonderful heartwarming event I happened across the other day. Taj Gibson, basketball player for the Timberwolves, was in Downtown Brooklyn buying prom clothing for poor children in Brooklyn. What an awesome thing for him to do. There is so much hatred and bigotry in this country today it was amazing to see the lineup of children from all ethnic groups. We need more of this kindness in our world.
Made a startling discovery. I was working on one of my family lines--the Whiteheads-- and came across an old photo of a great great uncle. I did a double take when I first saw it. He is the image of my first 'real' boyfriend, Richie. I mean, he could have been his twin. And Richie was a Whitehead, too. Could it be that Richie was indeed a distant cousin? Could my Whitehead ancestors also have been his? After seeing that picture I don't doubt it all. Good thing the relationship broke up when it did although I don't know if distant cousins would have been incest. Richie came to me in my dreams not too long ago to tell me that he had always loved me. That's when I did some research and found out he had passed away several years ago.
Speaking of photos and genealogy. A few weeks back I found this on Ancestry. This photo is of my 4th great aunt, Agnes Walton, sitting in front of the old school in Mt. Hope. She was born in 1792 and died a spinster in 1884. It was Agnes who kept the family history. Although I knew nothing about them back then when I still lived in Jersey, it was a shock to discover that that they had had a huge farm not too far from where I was living. In fact, Picatinny Arsenal. a military research and manufacturing base was once their farm. A small graveyard, The Walton Burial Ground, remains on the property. My 5th great grandfather is buried there.
I figured if I made enough Ralph could have some on Monday, too. Threw a little Romano cheese on top and it was so yummy. Not exactly on my diet, but hey, WW is not a diet. One can eat what they want in moderation. And it's okay to have pasta, or cake, or pizza, as long as you track, don't overdo, and get yourself back on track as soon as possible. The important thing is, one doesn't have to deprive themselves when on WW.
Italian hot sausage, casings removed
Cannonali beans
Ditalini pasta
Carrots
Celery
Fire roasted diced tomatos
Garlic
Onion
Chicken broth
Black pepper
Fennel Seeds
How fantastic that you are finding so many neat things in your family history!!!
ReplyDeleteTrump's separation of kids from their families is appalling. He is inflicting trauma that will last their entire lives.
ReplyDeleteYummy!
ReplyDeleteThe whole separation thing is an abomination. I cannot fathom how, as a nation, we have given up so much of our humanity that we are finding this is acceptable. Our children and grandchildren will judge us on this one.
I am so glad you counterbalanced the nastiness with someone reaching out and being kind. I sometimes forget those people are there.
ReplyDeleteThis world has gotten so messy. My brain can't understand all of the evil out there.
ReplyDeleteBut your family research sounds so cool! And that soup looks delicious :)
This whole thing with the camps and borders, separating families, it echos the stories I grew up hearing about the what happened during WWII. My grandma witnessed first hand what happened back then. Her words come to mind every time I read something or see these photos going around. I can only imagine what she would say if she were alive to see this happening in the country she loved so much.
ReplyDeleteThat soup looks very tasty!! And what treasures you found on your genealogy search. I wish I could afford to use Ancestry. But my tree is so stubborn, finding relevant stuff has always been a chore.
I don't even know what to say about the children being separated! So sad!! That is so cool, finding so many things about your family history! Thanks for the recipe! Big Hugs!
ReplyDelete