Marrying Across Boundaries

While we were at Polka Fest, we sat at the same table with a very friendly older woman who had a Czech heritage.  I brought up the fact that I had an ancestor from both the Czech side and from the Slovak side of the border.  She said that there was a big difference between the two.  I had already read a little about why Czechoslovakia had broken apart, and how the Czechs were typically more educated while the Slovaks were typically more rural.  So I didn't press her for details, partly out of a defensiveness that she might put down my Slovak ancestors.  When we discussed it later as a family, I wondered if marrying across ethnic boundaries put a strain on my great great grandparents' marriage.  After 6 children, Joannes Turanek abandoned Helene in Slovakia, came to Chicago and married a second woman (who specified her birthplace as Germany).  That conversation seemed to engage my son, speculating on the influence of prejudices & stereotypes in this situation.  Score one point for the genealogist mom :)

Polka On!

One of the biggest revelations of my research on my father's side concerned his grandfather's family.  Through Ancestry, we found my dad's second cousin and she stunned us with the circumstances of how the family had immigrated from Europe.  It was quite a shock for my dad because he grew up thinking he was one thing (German), and it got changed 65 years later (Czechoslovakian).  It was fun for me to get to look at a new culture as my own heritage, especially a culture that's so prevalent around central Texas.  A perfect opportunity to see that culture presented itself as we spent yesterday afternoon at the National Polka Festival.  On the schedule, I zeroed in on the kolache eating contest & the horseshoe contest as activities that might engage my teenager.  Surprisingly, when it came time to enter, my husband and father-in-law did while my son declined.  We all had a great time cheering them on.  Afterwards, we got to polka while the Texas Dutchmen played in the Katolická Jednota Texaská Hall.  I can't say my son had a fabulous time, but hopefully he got a little taste of his heritage and the men got a picture with Polka Fest Grand Marshal, Miss Texas.