My maternal grandmother had what might be described in a school report as a 'lively imagination.' She told us that she was a direct descendant of Sir Christopher Wren.

I am a fourth-generation descendant of the Sand Creek Massacre. My great-grandmother and great-grandfather were here during the attack, and they survived it. It's a special place for us, and I am happy that legislation to make this an historic site has passed.

My maternal grandmother was a star on her high school basketball team in small-town Mississippi.

My maternal grandmother was a star on her high school basketball team in small-town Mississippi.

For me, ancestry is just one thing that connects us to people, and feeling connected to other people is generally a good thing, as long as one kind of connection does not have primacy over all the others. Heredity, race and nationhood are not the best criteria by which to judge our fellow humans.