I would be... Tyler

During this project, I was tasked to research my heritage and find out what my life would be like if my relatives never moved to Ontario. Before I started this project I had a small idea of where I came from as all I knew was that I was part Filipino with a Chinese bloodline on my mother's side. As for my biological father's side, my grandmother was adopted and thus I’ll probably never know what the other half of my heritage. In thinking about this project I decided to look into my adoptive father’s heritage since my grandmother was in the Philippines and I didn't have the chance to talk to her. In looking into my adoptive heritage I ended up interviewing my grandmother and asking her about her heritage, “[Her] grandparents were french and the other was welsh. [Her] welsh grandfather came from wales, he was a sea captain. [Her] french grandfather was a fisherman in Rustico that's how he made his living.” she also told me that, “[she] was born in Charlottetown, Prince Edward island on November 3, 1945.”

 (My great great grandmother and grandfather [welsh side])

During the interview, I asked my grandmother what Charlottetown was like growing up and about the town her french grandfather lived in called north Rustico. She told me that “when [she] grew up there, the neighborhoods that were very very tight, as if they were connected, you would meet people everyday, like it was a very tight-knit community, people watched out for each other and some of the same struggles that the youth have today are the same struggles that [she] had growing up, finding out where you fit in and searching for what your main purpose in life is.” I was also told that “surprisingly enough there was some bullying but not as much as today.” and that “the average family size was large, as the majority of the population that was roman catholic.” I asked her about how the economy was like in Charlottetown and learned that “people depend on tourism mainly in the summer months, that's what supports the biggest part of their economy. There wasn't much industry back then, the only jobs were in the main town, my dad worked as a ship chandlers, the employment was mainly based on fishing and tourism.”

(my grandmother [far left] great grandfather, her sister, and my great grandmother)

I later asked her about why she moved to Ontario, she told me “I moved down during the Vietnam war sometime in 1964. During which I met many young men not much older than you moving to escape the Vietnam war, there were like conscientious objectors, they didn't want to go and they didn't feel it was their war to fight, they were also very scared as lots of their friends were being sent off to war and getting killed. I felt very bad for them as I could feel their fear.” and that “at the time prince Edward island was a very small contained island, we were very much on our own, there wasn't much communication yet and we didn't have the bridge to connect us to the rest of Canada yet. I always wanted to see what was beyond us, and I had relatives that came from Boston to visit, and I was very intrigued by the stories that they told, it made me want to see more and experience more.”
When I asked her about what it was like after she moved she said “I was about 19 and a half, I was very naive I didn't know how I survived, I did survive and met a lot of nice people and a lot of people who were… shady. I mean it was a big city and I was just a small town girl, but I did learn that there were a lot of nice people in Toronto. We didn't have social media so we didn't know what we're all the goings on so moving from a small town you would just trust people, it was a bit of a culture shock at the beginning. But Maritimers were known for their willingness to adapt, and although at times I was very homesick I knew this was going to be my home for a long long time.”
Afterward, I asked about what her education was when she moved and she told me “high school, then I studied nursing after working in the hospital as an aid, and as I worked I did some nursing tasks after which I pursued the profession. Afterward, I took the exams and classes to get my certification. That's when I met and embraced people working in the hospital from all different countries forming long friendships over the years.” she also told me that “I met your grandfather on the telephone when I was living in residence. he phoned looking for a friend also living in residence, and somehow he inquired from his friend who I was and she introduced us. We married in January 1970, and your dad was born 5 years later.”
After learning about my adoptive heritage I learned that if I was a 16-year-old living in Charlottetown I would be in a Christian school still taking most of the same courses. Although they most likely have McDonald's in Charlottetown I would probably be working on a farm, fishing boat or a tourist trap as those are the main sources of their economy.

Works Cited

Charlottetown map. Google, www.google.ca/search?q=map+of+charlottetown&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&gws_rd=cr&ei=qvB8WPblMuHZjwS3vZ-QBw.

Hughes, Evelyn. Interview. 15 Jan. 2017.