Acerca de
Transplanting
"There are always things to miss," said Maggie. "No matter where you are." - Patricia MacLachlan, Sarah, Plain and Tall
I first read this book in the third grade, and I reread it while taking Children's Literature and the Environment during my junior year at Eckerd. This scene always resonated with me, but I never knew why. That is, until we discussed the idea of transplanting.
It is in this scene of Sarah, Plain and Tall that Maggie tells Sarah that she should try planting a garden in order to beat her homesickness. Even though Sarah is skeptical that the flowers from her home in Maine will survive, Maggie urges her to try anyways. Like the plants, Sarah uprooted herself to live in a new place, which, in the end, helped her grow as a person.
​
The concept of transplanting is rooted in gardening. As a gardener's term, it means "to move a plant from one area to another," often in hopes of cultivating a larger, heartier, or overall better crop. Metaphorically, the same can sometimes be said of people.
​
For instance, consider the ideas of migration or immigration. This idea was especially pertinent to my own ancestors, who uprooted themselves from the British Isles (primarily Scotland and England), in hopes of finding a better, more prosperous life in America.
Obviously, Ancestry.com DNA tests merely estimate your likelihood of being of certain ethnic or regional backgrounds. Nevertheless, when compared to my family's highly-detailed genealogical records, these estimates are fairly accurate.
The majority of my family immigrated from the British Isles in the late-1700s, where they eventually settled in the piedmont area of the Carolinas in search of fertile farming land. My Scotch-Irish ancestors settled in rural Appalachia and were primarily subsistence farmers. My family has called Appalachia and the rural Carolinas home since then. In both cases, although they uprooted themselves in search of a better life, there was still a longing for their homeland. They channeled this homesickness through song, specifically, Anglo-American folk ballads, which I drew upon whilst writing my own songs.
It is worth noting that although my family was never monetarily wealthy, there is an innate privilege in being able to reference these detailed genealogical records. African-Americans who ended up living in these same Southern communities do not have access to basic genealogical records because in most cases they simply do not exist. I encourage all of you to ponder this in relation to your own family history and genealogical research.
Generations later, nearly 570 miles away...
This idea of transplanting has come full circle. My ancestors came to America in search of a better life, and brought their musical traditions with them. Now, nearly 300 years later, I followed in their footsteps and moved away from the only home that I have ever known.
​
The goal of this project is to honor my family since they are the reason that I am here today. Their stories have shaped me into who I am, and who we are as a family. I also want to honor myself though, as I have grown so much as a result of uprooting and beginning a new life - my own life. Thus, this project is as much about history as it is about an anticipated future.
