Ancestor's tale

Alex's mother stopped by to drop off his great-grandfather hand carved clock he inherited through the family line. He had it placed in his living room next to his 95-inch television and surround sound theater system. He watched Sportscenter at 6:59 awaiting the clock to strike seven.

The sportscaster announced that LeBron James scored thirty-five points and won the game for the Los Angeles Lakers. Alex cheers for LeBron and thinks checks the other scores for his other teams. As the clock ticks away, he realizes that there are just fifty seconds left. Alex's mind raced back to the memories he shared with his mother. The laughter, the stories, the secrets whispered in the dead of night. This grandfather clock was a symbol of his family’s past.

With 45 seconds left, Alex's fingers trembled as he reached out to touch the clock and admire its unique carvings. He repeats to himself in amazement he could not believe how his great-grandfather created this masterpiece. With its tall free-standing tower with many tiny carving around the base and the sides. Alex wonder what these carvings meant since this one was personalize to his great- grandfather's personal choices. This particular piece was a direct representation of his grandfather's homeland with animals and the tribes of that particular area in Ghana. Alex felt honored to now be the owner of this particular work of art and history.

As the second hand continues to tick, Alex continue to observe it's movement. His mother informs him that at every hour it plays the music of his homeland. He thinks about how it will change how he sees himself rich in history that he can now discover.

As he looked further at the details he found the link to his ancestry tribes link back to the Ewe tribe in Ghana. He picked his phone up to look up the history of this tribe. The further he researched the more interested in his past he became, and he figured he needed to book a trip to Ghana.

He begins to scroll the internet as he decides to call his mother into the living room to ask her a million questions about their homeland of Ghana. She smiles back at him and begins to tell him stories about times past when she was a child traveling back and forth. "See son it is something that you have to personally experience on your own." His mother glances at him with the biggest smile on her face.

She responds, " I am excited that you want to take this trip; I have always wanted you to take it upon yourself to learn about your past. She puts her arm around him and gives him a large hug and kiss on the cheek. As she walks out of view, Alex picks his phone up taps on the United Airlines app, and books a trip to Ghana. He then books him a hotel room for two weeks.

With 20 seconds remaining, Alex's gaze fell upon a small, hidden compartment in the clock. A note, yellowed with age, lay inside. His great-grandfather's handwriting danced across the page, speaking of love, forgiveness, and the memories he shared with the love he shared.

As the clock struck 10 seconds, Alex's eyes welled up with tears. He had been so blind, so caught up in his own life. That he never took it upon himself to learn about his history. 5 seconds left, and he knew what he had to do.

With 1 second remaining, Alex whispered, “ I’ll see you soon ancestors. I love you.” The grandfather clock stuck 7, as Alex dropped the note on the floor, the television shut off, and Alex walks out the house locking the door.