A strange coincidence

[Marrah_G]

I was raised in a very Irish Catholic family, very proper and straight laced. Almost all of my siblings and cousins are still active Catholics and truly wonderful people. I am the only one who is Pagan. Also the only one with a weight issue, they are all very athletic and fit. I have almost the same ethnic background as my adopted family and even look a great deal like them.

But this isn't really about adoption....A few years at age 33 I found my birth family.

My younger sister is not only Pagan, but also Wiccan like I am. My brother is an agnostic that leans towards paganism. My grandmother read cards and tea leaves. My great grandmother was 103 ( she passed 6 months after I was found)and a Blackfoot Indian. She had the gift of sight to an extent that people were almost afraid to visit her if they had any secrets. I inherited some of these same things LONG before I knew anything about these people.

Oh yes.... and they are heavy.

The wieght...genetics...marrying young, having babies young...probably genetics....but religious tendencies?...could there be something in the wiring that brings you towards one conclusion or another?

Most likely all a coincidence.... but it makes me go hmmmmmmmmmm.

[zeemike]

1. Glad for you that you found your birth family

And so yo get a heart today
But it could have been that you felt different than your adopted family and was just looking for something different to identify with.
Or it could be just how the brain is hard wired, I don't know, but celebrate your origins anyway.

[Marrah_G]

5. Thank you !

It's been a great experience over all.

You could absolutely be right. It just all seems a bit to weird when I think about it too much.

[Stanchetalarooni]

2. Genetics play a great role in all aspects of human behavior.

Check out the Monday night tv show "Heroes" for inspiration.
Google religion and genetics for more info.

[Realityhack]

10. twins studies are a great place to start as well n/t

[Lydia Leftcoast]

3. Very cool

It's pretty clear that basic temperaments are inborn. My brother's first daughter was calm, sweet-tempered, and quiet from infancy. The second daughter was squirrely, excitable, and unpredictable, a shock to my brother and his wife, who thought, due to their experience with their laid-back first daughter, that they had this childrearing stuff mastered.

I don't see why spiritual inclinations couldn't be similar. You could have inherited a sensitivity to the spiritual aspects of the natural world, just as some people seem to have an innate artistic visual sense or musical talent.

It could also explain why some people are the lone atheist or the lone believer in their family.

[Stanchetalarooni]

4. Or the lone fascist?

Or a whole family generation upon generation of fascists?

[Warpy]

6. It sounds like finding your birth family has been a positive thing

and that's great. Often, expectations are so high that it has no chance of working out.

However, preliminary research indicates that religion (or the lack of it) is hard wired into our brains. That your genetic family would be wired the same way you are is no accident.

The weird stuff to me are the twin adoptee studies where both twins use the same obscure brand of imported toothpaste, for instance. I think it was Swedish toothpaste. I've never seen Swedish toothpaste here, let alone been inclined to use it.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

7. Swedish toothpaste? Vademecum

It was heavily advertised in the U.S. during the 1960s.

[knitter4democracy]

8. Was it on your mom's side?

The reason I ask is that there's anecdotal evidence supporting knitting and other crafting skills being passed down on the mother's side. I have had students who never once picked up knitting needles in their lives who were practically perfect from the first cast on--they then told me that their grandmothers or aunts on their mom's side were master knitters. I think there's something there.

We get so much from our moms. Mitochondrial DNA and half of the genes are from our moms, and there's more in there than we thing, I'd bet.

[Marrah_G]

9. Yes. I have no knowledge of my genetic father's side.

[knitter4democracy]

11. See, there ya go.

:) You probably come from a long line of warrior women, survivors of the fires and attacks. Do you have nightmares of fires? I read in Women Who Run with the Wolves that many women have nightmares of fire when they're in the midst of being true to themselves or challenging the status quo or changing faithpaths. The author thinks it has to do with the witch burnings and that it's a cultural memory buried deep in all of us.

What an awesome legacy! Just think of the power you have! :hug:

[John Gauger]

12. There are some people within the field of genetics

that believe that absolutely everything about a person - and I mean everything - is determined by the genes, including behavior. I'm not really knowledgeable about the subject; that's just something I heard in high school.

[Dorian Gray]

13. Wow!

Very interesting marrah! I, too, am adopted, and I love reading stories like this. While I have not pursued knowledge about my birth family, I am really interested in stories about people who have found them.

As for religious tendencies? I have no idea how that works, but it's fascinating. :)