E Pluribus Unum

I’m torn. Last week, I had decided what I would write about this week. I thought about it all week. Yesterday I sat down to write and I just lost the drive behind what I had chosen to write about. I did spend a good amount of time researching, and learning about my history. It’s been fantastic. I learned that I had an ancestor that came to America in 1640, for what reason, I’m not sure. From there I was able to trace the lineage down to me, and see the places they had been before we ended up where we are now. It’s tough to choose which person on the tree to follow. With some people there is a lot of information available, and with others, not so much. For many of us we know that our lineage did not originate in the Americas. We know that we came from somewhere else at some point in history. On the great seal of the United States of America there is a phrase in Latin that has always stuck with me. That is E Pluribus Unum. Which translates to out of many, one. We created this nation with people from all different walks of life, and it is those differences that make us better. We could not be who we are today without them. 

So, in school I was taught that America is a melting pot. Where different nationalities, cultures and ethnicities are fused into one. I can see the reasoning behind that, when it originated, people from all over had to come together to make a successful nation. Now however America is more of a salad bowl, where different cultures mix but still remain distinct. We shouldn’t have to melt ourselves down to fit the mold of  the United States. The mold should change and adapt with our cultures. We should embrace and cherish our differences. We should know our history. We should learn from it, and be better because of it. I want to raise children in a diverse nation, where they can be taught about all of the people it took to make this country what it is. I want them to know all that they can about their lineage. I want them to know about the choices their ancestors made, good or bad and choose to be better because of it. I want to raise children that will fight the injustices they see and stand together as fight to make positive changes. We can be better, and make better for our future generations. Much like so many of our ancestors did for us. 

So again, I’m torn. I have wanted to write about this for months. I wasn’t able to articulate exactly what I wanted to say. I’ve started and stopped many times, and still I’m not 100 percent satisfied, but its all in the process. 

My challenge for you at this step in the journey is to know where you came from, and take the time to teach someone else about it. I personally would love to be apart of your continuing journey, and I would especially love to learn about your past. 

 Embrace the journey that came before, and make the continuing journey better for those that come after.