Dear Hasbeen,

Thank you for sharing.

Goodness me - if we think life is hard now - back
in those days it must have been even more so.
Our families faced terrible tragedies and
heartache. They must have faced things that might
seem impossible to overcome. Yet they overcame them.

That's what has added to making us more
resilient.

Celebrating family traditions, embracing our culture
and understanding where we came from certainly can
open our eyes. It makes me count my blessings daily.

Again, Thank You.

Hi Foxy,

My most interesting ancestor is my Great Great Grandmother on my mothers side CONSTANCE LOUISA (COURONNE) TRUDGETT. Born a slave on the island of Mauritius in 1824 of Creole blood, African/Indian? Convicted of attempted murder at the age of 8, transported to New South Wales for life, an assigned servant, a free woman, a successful pastoralist. The property 'Gum Flat' she established in 1847 with her convict husband is still in my family over 170 years later. I have read all there is about my ancestors trial and what then past for British justice, it was a shocker. The lady accuser didn't even appear in court to give evidence, she sent a statement. There was no cross-examination at all. There was no real representation for the girls, other than the court people.

http://www.facebook.com/1547684265508926/posts/window-on-womenconstance-couronne-trudgett-from-slave-to-respected-pioneerconsta/2298536400423705/

Dear Paul,

What a truly amazing character your ancestor
Constance Louisa Couronne Trudgett must have
been. And what a fascinating story of her life.
It surely must give you a sense of pride and
a sense of belonging a boost. Increasing your
happiness that your ancestry was so resilient.

No wonder you are so understanding and you can
connect so well with others. Family histories can
have amazing effects. They allow us to connect
with people in the past - I was so glad to read
that despite the hardship she did end up having a
fulfilling life. And was much loved and highly
respected.

Hi again Foxy,

For my wife's people tupuna (Ancestry) and knowing your whakapapa (genealogy) is most important. If you get up to speak in the Marae you first introduce yourself by addressing your tupuna and your whakapapa, offering words of respect for the ancestors, for many the ancestors are staring down at them from the 100's of pictures that adorn the walls. Te Aroha has many Chiefs and Paramount Chiefs in her line, she can trace them back to before the time of Cook. My wife's last Paramount Chief passed in the 1930's and for some reason the Kaumatua's (elder males) sitting in judgement refused to acknowledge his successor then, and they have not had a Paramount Chief since. Maybe he didn't understand the tribes protocols correctly, or some action of his had made him unworthy, don't know.

Dear Paul,

Give my love to Te. She sounds like a lovely lady.
And her ancestry is fascinating. I wish that you would
write a book on all this history. I for one would buy
it.

Hi Foxy,

Family history can be fascinating, my cousin has done and extreme amount of digging into our family history. From my ancestor Constance Couronne, her pic is in the link, you can see her skin was very dark, she had 11 children all living to adulthood, a feat in those days on its own. In those times it seems women of mixed blood had no problem marrying white men, but the males with their "aboriginal" features married aboriginal or part aboriginal women. My Great Grandmother was an exception, from her pic she was a very beautiful woman, yet she married a part Aboriginal man. For many in the family, including my mother, that was unacceptable

cont