mtDNA and a long line of women...

 

Yes, another post about my family tree...well, sort of. I'm combining that with a bit of geeky science stuff. (And for those who know of me deep affection for Schrodinger's Cat and Pi Day, well, this post won't surprise you. LOL)

As I plunge into my past, I can't help notice how often one of my grandmother's names is lost to history. My grandfather's name is there...in a census, on a property deed or in a will. His wife's name? It's a bit more hit or miss. She might be simply listed as Mrs. John Smith. 

It's so frustrating. I've dug through so many death certificates, looking for a maternal name.
That led me to mulling over the idea of Mitochondrial DNA or mtDNA.

I might like geeky science stuff, but I'm not a scientist, so my explanation is very layperson. You get your mitochondria from your mother. (Okay, I read a piece that some paternal mtDNA can sneak in, but let's just go with maternal.) So as I look at my family tree, at those named and unnamed women on the female branches of my tree, I realize that I share the same mitochondria as them. I'm bumping into an issue with my 3rd great-grandmother. I can't pinpoint her first name, much less her last name. She's listed in a deed transfer as John and wife.

And wife.

Now I want to be clear, I am thrilled to be Himself's wife. And I'd like to think he's thrilled to be my husband. But I've never been one to use the title Mrs. Himself. I'm mainly Ms. Holly, when I use an honorific at all. Mainly I'm just Holly or Hall. Sometimes even Hey You. 

This matter of family, or names is something I've mulled a lot in the past. I was born with one man's last name. I adopted another man's last name. I married and happily took Himself's last name. And I when I started writing, I wrote under an altogether new last name. 

Through all those names, I've been Holly. It's a name my mother gave me in hopes that it would never lead to a nickname...which of course explains they I've spent most of my life as Hall. (Poor Mom.) 

Anyway, you can trace your mtDNA all the way to Africa and see how your tribe of foremothers migrated. All my children carry my mtDNA, but only my daughters will pass it on. Their children will have it, but only a granddaughter will pass it on. I love that image of a long line of women. One after another. Mother to daughter down the line. And then, someday, when I'm gone, that mtDNA I inherited from my mother will still be out there, moving down the line. I love that piece of immortality. It makes me feel a little better about the unnamed women in my family tree...a piece of them is still here.

On a total aside, in a very geeky tangent, I was talking about the nuclear fusion experiment with the Minions today. I really am so excited about this giant step. But how to talk about fusion vs fission with kids. Hmm. My layperson explanation worked well. Imagine smashing rocks apart. Pieces would fly everywhere. The little pieces? Those are radiation and they're bad for you. But if you take a couple rocks and glue them together...there are no little bits (radiation). That idea of clean, unlimited energy is so exciting, even though it's decades away!

Yeah, I know. I romance novelist talking mtDNA and nuclear fission...just another day in my life. LOL

Holly

That idea of finding family runs through all my books, but especially in my Hometown Hearts series. You can find the whole series here, and one of them, Something Perfect, is part of a new anthology, Surprises Come in all Sizes. The whole collection is only $.99. It's a great way to try it out along with some marvelous stories by other bestselling, award winning authors! I'm so thrilled to be in an anthology with them!