[pf] Which of your ancestors to honour.

· I've been sitting here thinking this through, instead of getting on with
my work (an Energy Policy submission, and my environmental news report).

· Many hundreds of years ago, my ancestors in the male line, the Lamonts,
were attacked and nearly wiped out by another, bigger clan in Scotland.
Most of the Lamont males fought and died, but some ran and hid; I am a
descendant of those who ran away, and I honour them for doing so.

· Some other ancestors were Huguenots, persecuted in France and England;
some, maybe many, would have been killed if they had stayed in France; for
that reason as well as wishing to be economic migrants, they left, "ran
away", and settled in (I believe) Pennsylvania. I honour them for their
putting their own and their families' welfare above the demands of their
native country.

· At a time I'm not clear on, the MacClements refused to switch allegiance
to the new United States of America, didn't buckle under the pressure to
conform, collected family and belongings and moved up to Canada, with many
others who in Canada are (still) called United Empire Loyalists (though
they were probably called traitors or the like, in the US).
  I honour my ancestors for making a very hard decision, carrying it
through and making it work; that took guts. _Women_and_men_.

· Another branch of my family tree, the Richardsons (my mother's ancestors)
left Yorkshire for reasons I don't know, but I would guess at being
economic migrants, putting their own and their families' welfare before the
expectations of their stay-at-home neighbours and their native country, and
emigrated to New Zealand.
  I honour them for what I interpret as their unwillingness to put up with
the class system in England of the early 19th century, and their
determination and energy in settling a new land.

· And lastly, though they weren't ancestors, I very much honour and admire
Quakers for their gutsy ability to stick by their own beliefs, including
their steadfast refusal to fight in anyone's wars. By extension, though
most weren't Quakers, I remember admiring the draft-resisters in the 1960s
and early 1970s who came to Canada at the time my wife and I were there,
just starting our family. I hoped I would be able to do the same, in
similar circumstances.

· I suppose it's not surprising that I criticise common beliefs.

David.
(David MacClement) davd@ihug.co.nz 
http://www.geocities.com/davd.geo/index.html#top
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