Different cultures of Apricity!

[Gooding]

Great to hear about your family Gooding . My nuclear family are the only members of my family in North America, so our family events were usually filled out with family friends rather than blood relations. That being said, my fathers (Italian) side of the family has lived in the UK for ~120 years, so I got a chance to visit the UK often growing up. Even though my dad's family married within the Italian community of England (essentially no UK DNA in my 23andMe, ~7% north euro), they are loyal to the UK first, and my great grand father fought for England in WWI, and my Grandfather was an AA gunner in London during the blitz (then on to North Africa), my Grandfather even lost a brother who was in the Royal Navy to a U-Boat. Even now I have a cousin in the Royal Navy, he toured me around the HMS Victory at Portsmouth last year. My moms side of the family is Greek, mostly from the island of Corfu, but all over the place really. Long history in Greece, and I know that I had relatives in both Balkan wars, WWI, WWII, and the Greek Civil War (moms maternal side Communist, paternal side Fascist hah). My parents met when my mom went to London to do her PhD, and the rest is history. I also got a chance to visit Greece many many times growing up, but never learned the language.. which means I am not really that close with my mothers side of the family, which is a shame. Luckily, in midwestern Canada, I am really involved with my long term girlfriends family and their farm (I study Plant Genetics in University and love agriculture).. and they allllllllways have family around. Took some getting used to having like 10 people sitting around for Sunday Brunch.. but I love it.

It seems to me that your family history and cultural experiences are a lot more interesting than mine ( not that that would be hard, of course). It's awesome that your family could put down such firm roots in the U.K. and then Canada! It's good to hear that you're so close not only with your own family, but your long term girlfriend's family as well! Very nice.

[Journeyman26]

Middle class latin americans living in Latin America.
Diaspora lower class latin americans living in USA.
Two cultures completely different in behavior and education.

I didn't specify race in any of the examples, just where they live. I would include your first example under latin americans, and your second under North Americans. Though your point is taken.

[Trogdor]

That seems an easy enough request! For me and my family, while family means a lot, personal independence is treasured. We rarely hold family reunions, but when we do, we talk about current things happening in the family while the older people tell their stories about where the family is from, what their grandfathers and grandmothers did and we eat. There is always plenty of food and a lot of photo- ops. The men and the women tend to socialize among themselves. Those of us who go to church every Sunday might talk about our churches and the sermons we'd heard, while the atheists would discuss current events and politics with each other. Of course old family albums are brought out and we look at pictures of our great- great grandparents and we'd talk a very little bit about being English ( in the sense that X ancestor came from Shrewsbury or Gloucester).. love of Virginia seems to be something we all share in common. The older folks would talk about their aunts and uncles, where they came from, what they did and how their families connected with ours. When my sister Keli and I were growing up, we'd go to Sunday School and Church every Sunday and hang out at Granny McDonald's house in Falls Church for the afternoon. She would always make sure we were fed and welcomed us without question. She'd talk about her mother whenever I'd ask her and she spoke of the Pecot family in Louisiana and growing up Catholic. Her father, who was from Kentucky, was apparently very rarely around, so Granny couldn't tell me much about him. When we were very small, we'd visit Granny Gooding's house in Oakton every Saturday. She was more interested in talking with the grownups.. us kids were to be seen and not heard. The Goodings were a little stricter than the McDonalds, very old values.

Sounds like in spite of not holding family gatherings often, your family seems to be very close with each other. Sadly I don't think some people put much emphasis on family these days.

[Gooding]

Sounds like in spite of not holding family gatherings often, your family seems to be very close with each other. Sadly I don't think some people put much emphasis on family these days.

That's just always the way things have been for us. I do notice the deterioration of family ties, too, and I think that's a major reason for so much unhappiness you see..

[Brianna]

It's great that you have that connection with your extended family. My family is nothing like that. I knew a few relatives growing up, but we never had that strong family identity...probably representative of our general cultural differences (I'm a Midwesterner).

That surprises me, since you're part Sicilian. My cousin complained that Italian families were closer than our family. They always had dinners and celebrations together while we rarely even talked. He left out the fact that he moved across the country. Still, he had a point. One side of my family is more distant for a variety of reasons.

[Gooding]

[Mortimer]

That surprises me, since you're part Sicilian. My cousin complained that Italian families were closer than our family. They always had dinners and celebrations together while we rarely even talked. He left out the fact that he moved across the country. Still, he had a point. One side of my family is more distant for a variety of reasons.

he is only 1/8 sicilian its distant and i dont know how many sicilian relatives he knows or if he grew up within a "sicilian family" probably not

[Mortimer]

anyone wants to include me in their observations, thanks.

[Gooding]

anyone wants to include me in their observations, thanks.

Romani:
Best: Thoughtful and diplomatic posts well researched.
Worst: Can be oversensitive and timid.

[Mortimer]

Romani:
Best: Thoughtful and diplomatic posts well researched.
Worst: Can be oversensitive and timid.

thanks man