The Things We've Handed Down

While on Spring Break vacation over this past week, my husband and I both noticed distinctive traits in our daughter which we identified, not with either of us per se, but with one or more of her grandparents. For instance, my sweet father-in-law, my husband’s Dad, is notorious for making up answers to questions to which he may or may not actually know the answer. On several occasions, our sweet girl would share a story about a native plant or offer a suggestion to something of which she was hardly an expert and we’d laugh and say “well, there’s Poppa.” 

Not a social butterfly myself, I was struck by her friendliness and chattiness while waiting in lines as she struck up conversations with those around her, seemingly unphased by gender, age, or even ethnicity. “Where are y’all staying?” I heard her inquire of one lady. There’s my mother-in-law. She’s never met a stranger and shares seemingly specific and not-interesting family facts with everyone she encounters. 

Our resort was a sprawling layout of twisting sidewalks and circuitous, meandering paths connecting one building or area to the next. When she would insist on a certain trajectory and scoff at the notion of stopping and asking for directions, I saw my own Daddy. More often than not, though, in both of their stubbornness, we actually would find our desired target. 

These observations led me to consider other genetic inheritances which led me to this:

"The Things We've Handed Down" by Marc Cohn