At the end of the day I have always seen the end of my relationships as a personal failure. There is nothing ever pretty in saying goodbye.
But when you see personal artifacts relating to - by genealogy at least - a living human being, it was just more impressive to me than just about anything I've ever read about slavery before.
Growing up, I was taught that a man has to defend his family. When the wolf is trying to get in, you gotta stand in the doorway.