Teaching DNA?

When I think back to going to university, I marvel that I did it. At the time, there wasn't a track record for me to follow. Neither of my parents completed university. None of my aunts and uncles or grandparents did. They all were very successful people in business. Some of my cousins started university, but at that time they hadn't finished. I look back sometimes and can't believe I even considered going to school to become a teacher. I really didn't know what I was doing.  I didn't know how to select courses and maneuver the intricacies of a huge school like that. The content wasn't hard. The work wasn't that hard...the long haul of it was hard. Often when I was in the midst of my schooling, I wondered why I shouldn't just quit. I had skills I could use and places I could work and did work...but something propelled me forward.  It took me a long time to figure things out. I wasn't good at asking for help. It's a miracle I made it through. 

I certainly am grateful for all the help and support I got with my goal. University changed me. It helped me be open to thinking about and discussing things I would have never otherwise. In the end, I loved it. Still, I wondered where I ever got the hair-brained idea that I could become a teacher. 

Recently, I've been helping share family history stories my mom writes up. I felt impressed that I should help her out somehow and so I revived The Family Called Hyde blog and we share a story each day. One of the stories my mom shared was about my Great Great Grandpa Hyde. He was a teacher and was not very impressed with his son's chosen ambitions to become a blacksmith. As a result, his son decided to leave and never come back. In those days, it meant he'd never see his family again. It seems his father was okay with that and that is sad.

 After a while, it struck me that maybe a tiny part of me came from Great Great Grandpa Hyde. Maybe it was part of my internal make up. Maybe his DNA helped me through university. One thing is for sure, I love teaching. It has changed me forever.