IF YA DON'T ACT ROYAL, YOU AIN'T ROYAL. Pt. 1

Among my most avid interests is genealogy. Given that my undergrad degree was in history, I guess that’s a foregone conclusion.

I have done a great deal of research on my various family surnames, have created my own personal family tree on ancestry.com, and have submitted a sample of my precious saliva, and, subsequently, received an analysis of my DNA.

I think I must have the most diverse genealogy of anyone in the State of Florida. For between my DNA results, my mother’s DNA results, and some pretty reliable family information, I have discovered that my ethnicities include: English, Scottish, Irish, Welsh, German, Austrian, Danish, Spanish, Slovakian, Italian, Jewish, Arab, Native American, and Black African.

Interestingly enough, with each previous generation of our lineage our direct ancestors (grandparents) are multiplied by two, i.e., we have two parents, four grandparents, eight great grandparents, etc. By the time we arrive at the 33^rd ancestral generation, (approx. 1500 years) each and every one of us have (drum roll)… 1 billion great grandparents. And with each additional generation that number is multiplied by two.

All this to say, there are a multitude of family connections between ourselves and the next guy, and the sheer number of our ancestors virtually guarantee that you, and I, and the guy next door, no matter our notoriety, status, national origins, or color, are distant cousins.

Speaking of notoriety, I have discovered a large number of famous people among my distant cousins; living and dead. People such as Ulysses S. Grant, Franklin Roosevelt, Henry Longfellow, and Richard Gere.

(to be continued)

by William McDonald, PhD. Excerpt from "McDonald's Daily Diary." Vol. 73. Copyright pending.

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