Robin Gerry

Healing the Family Heart Holes Robin Gerry

This book is the personal story of how one woman traced back her maternal family history to discover the true circumstances of her mother's illegal 'adoption'. Using DNA, genealogical research, the kindness of new found relatives and a willingness to keep cross referencing hundreds and hundreds of new family names and locations, the story unfolded within a historical context. It became a genealogical adventure with an honest to God princess, allegations of Islamic terrorism, an Irish bog man, movie stars, old kings of Ireland, as well as poor farmers, blacksmiths and saloon keepers. But primarily it was a story of discovering the power of raw endurance and survival in the face of overwhelming horror. And understanding the strength of carrying on after the trauma of oppression, famine, and war. It is the saga of intergenerational Irish and German immigration, family tragedy and triumph. The story reminds us of how understanding what happened within our own family history can have on healing our own hearts. It can be a beginners guide to start thinking about how to figure out your own family story.