Have you ever accepted a family story as fact for years and years and then discovered all is not what it seemed?
I had an interesting experience recently when I met a distant cousin called Jack. He told me how their family had no idea they had Maori ancestors until one day he uncovered the truth - much to his sister's amusement.
Apparently, when Jack's father asked his girlfriend's step-father for her hand in marriage, the old-school gentleman said, "You may want to reconsider, as Hannah has Maori blood." Jack's father was not perturbed and asked for her hand again. The old man then made him promise to keep the secret as Hannah had no idea of the truth. Her own father had died when she was only a toddler and she had no memories or photographs of him.
While it seemed strange to me that this sort of thing could happen, I had to remember that at the time, the early 1900s, anyone with Maori blood faced prejudice and it was considered, even by many Maori, that the English way was the best way to live. Part of Hannah's heritage was denied her until she discovered her Maori roots in later years.
So that led me to question how much of what we are told is truth and how much has been changed over time for reasons that we find difficult to understand now? What other family secrets are waiting to be revealed - more I hope as they make the story so much more interesting. How about you - any family secrets?
