See how that happens? Life’s a circle, grandbabies.
You are from a fractious family separated by fissures deeper than the ocean, but you also come from a fierce and proud line of folks who, if necessary, will reach out from the grave to prop you up. I know this. It’s happened to me.
I’m sorry you never met your great-great-grandfather. This song always makes me think of him, a complicated man who nevertheless treated me like a piece of fine china. I’m sorrier still you never met your great-grandfather. He, too, had a reputation for being difficult, but he, too, treated your granny like a rare and beautiful thing. They both, in their way, taught me to look beneath the surface, to ask questions, and to cut people some slack once in a while. This while they never once cut each other slack. Ah, me.
On your granny’s side, you’re from Ulster Presbyterians, who read their Holy Text to find answers to the social injustice around them. That’s a proud tradition. As fate would have it, you’re growing up Roman Catholic. Well and good, but you keep your eyes and your efforts on justice, and God — both the Catholic one and the Protestant — will reward you greatly.
I’m just kidding about the Catholic/Protestant God. It’s all the same, dolls. We’re all marching in the same direction. Wear green. Wear orange. It. Does. Not. Matter.
Onward.
Dating Jesus 