DNA

What if the answers you’ve been looking for are already in you?

In this episode, Shonte breaks down what DNA really is and why understanding your bloodline can change how you see yourself.

From generational patterns to hidden family truths, she connects the dots between identity, behavior, health, and purpose. 

This episode will challenge you to stop asking, “What’s wrong with me?” and start asking, “Where does this come from?”

Because your DNA is not your limitation…. it’s your information.

Stay connected and continue the journey.

This is more than a podcast, it’s a call to become more intentional in how you show up, speak, and move.

If this resonated with you, share it with someone who needs it.

The same voice just wiser, quieter, and more intentional.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

When I think of my ancestors, I really want to make them proud. I want them to know that all of their sacrifices were not in vain. But then I think about the environments that I've been in. And it would make many people go insane. But the pain, the struggle, it's not new to someone who comes from those who prayed for better days. And that's when my spirit rises. That's when something in me shifts. My discernment becomes a guiding light, leading me, reminding me that it is in me to fight for what I know is right. Because I don't just come from survival. I am the arrival of purpose. Welcome to She is Shantae, the Putting Your Best Foot Forward series, where in every episode we say what we need to say, face what we've been avoiding, and choose on purpose to put our best foot forward and L E A V E leave the trauma behind. Well, in the last episode, Pandora's Box, it was really heavy. We talked about environment, what we experienced, what we lived through, and how things shaped us. But today, today we're going deeper because it's not just about what happened around you, it's also about what's already in you. Now, it it took me a while to sit down and record this episode because I wanted to make sure I honored my family. I wanted to make sure I honored my ancestors because I know all of the sacrifices that they've made for me, and I am truly thankful and grateful. I understand legacy, and I understand that I am a reflection of who they are and of everything that they endured. So let's talk about DNA. DNA is your genetic makeup. It's like a blueprint of who you are. It shows up in and how you look, your eye color, your complexion, your cheekbones, your hair texture, even the way you carry yourself. But it doesn't stop there. DNA can influence your personality, your tendencies, your tolerance or lack thereof, your reactions, even how your body responds to life. DNA is it's actually information passed down from generation to generation. So when I say, when I do say it, and I say it all the time, DNA is real, I'm talking about your bloodline, which you come from. Now let me say something. What does this have to do with you? Why should you care about your DNA? Because understanding your DNA, it really does help you understand you, why you respond the way you do, why certain things trigger you, why you tolerate what you tolerate, why you're strong in some areas and and maybe you struggle in others. And here's the part we don't really talk about enough. Many of us have no idea of who we really come from. You see, in a lot of families, there's so many secrets, and those secrets keep you stuck. There are things that were never said and truths hidden. Sit with that for a minute. Some of us grow up thinking that someone is our our mother or our father, and they're really not. So those secrets, those lies, they really do keep us stuck. Because how can you understand yourself if you don't even know who you come from or what you come from? So, you guys, this is about truth. This is about uncovering, this is about asking questions and demanding the truth, demanding answers. Because when you understand your DNA, you begin to understand yourself more clearly, and when you understand yourself clearly, you can move differently and with confidence. So on my father's side, my father's side, I come from black Choctaw and Cherokee Indians. That lineage is about survival, it's about courage and wealth, land. My fourth great grandfather, his name was Solomon Pitchlin. Now, Solomon is written about in the book titled Peter Pitchlin, Chief of the Choctaws by W. David Baird. Now, listen, when I learned that my fourth great-grandfather was written about, and he is literally written about in a book that is held in the Library of Congress. I was so proud. I wanted to shout it from the rooftops. They're writing about my fourth great-grandfather. Well, his history is rich. All right. So he was a slave of Choctaw Chief Peter Pitchlin, right? He ran the plantation basically when Peter Pitchlin was away. Now I thought, why would this quote unquote slave be granted all of this favor by the Choctaw chief? Well, after putting together all of the clues that were left for my family, I realized after hearing all the stories that were passed down from generation to generation, after seeing the all of the documents that were left, Solomon was not just a mere slave, he was blood. That was family. And so Peter Pitchlin trusted his blood relative, okay, to run the plantation when he was away. Now, this was major for me. So to understand a little bit about Solomon Pitchlin and what he did on that plantation, and again, check out the book, you guys. I have the book. I can't let the book go. Again, Chief of the Choctaws by W. David Baird. It was talked about about how all of the other plantation owners in the area would talk about how the pitchland plantation was like it was a bunch of free Negroes over there just running around. This is in the book, and they're talking about my fourth-grade grandfather. But I digress. Anywho, it was known that Solomon would give refuge to runaway slaves. Now, in the area of Oklahoma that the pitchland plantation was in, Arkansas was right there. So a lot of runaway slaves would come to Oklahoma. And it was widely known that if you can make it to the pitchland plantation, ask for Solomon and he would help you. Now for me, that was courageous of Solomon. And that same bloodline, that same bloodline was forced to walk the Trail of Tears out of Natchez, Mississippi. They were forced to walk, they were removed from their homeland in Mississippi, removed by the U.S. government. I want to say the time was late fall, early winter. Under brutal conditions, they walked all the way from Mississippi to what was then called Indian Territory, Oklahoma. Those conditions were brutal. They watched their loved ones perish along the way. And all that suffering gave it its name, the Trail of Tears. Many didn't make it, but my family did. That is resilience. That is strength. That is courage. And that is my DNA. Now from that same bloodline came Virginia Riley Holloway. Now Virginia is Solomon's granddaughter. I was told by my grandmother, by my aunts, who had the pleasure of growing up knowing Virginia. I was told about how she was beautiful, how she how she had this long straight black hair flowing down her back. How she was graceful and strong. And her tolerance level was low for anything that was not of business and that was not of purpose. I was told about how she would ride her horse sideways, patrolling her land, protecting what was hers. So, a little bit about why she did that. So back then, all of the natives were giving an allotment of land, and my family's land was passed down. So Virginia inherited acres of land. And because of the work that her and her husband, her husband was Joseph Holloway, because of the work that they did and the amount of wealth that they had, they were targets for the white man. So let me tell you about Joseph Holloway, Virginia's husband, and my second great-grandfather. Joseph was a mulatto man. He was a pastor, a man of God. He owned a general store, they had land, he helped his community. And he would secretly teach former slaves to read. And so what this meant for the Holloways was they were putting their life on the line. Because back then the white man wanted nothing to do with anything. A black, an Indian knowing how to read, that was dangerous. But he he did it anyway. He saw that this was going to help his people. And so that to me is a heart of service. He put it all on the line. They tried to burn their store down, they tried to burn their land. And that is the story that's been passed down about how Virginia would patrol the land with her shotgun on her lap, beautiful as she was, playing no games with nobody that was trying to bring harm to her family. So again, that's my bloodline: service, faith, courage, leadership, and wealth. Now, on my mother's side, I want to take a moment to acknowledge my cousin Ivy Thomas. My cousin Ivy spent many, many years researching my family history. And for me, I'm so grateful for that. Through that research, we were connected to William Steele. My great-grandfather, his father was um John Steele. John Steele is connected to William Steele. William Steele was very instrumental in helping slaves escape to freedom. So he was connected to the Underground Railroad. That story alone, many of us have heard, of course, of Harriet Tupman and the and the Underground Railroad, and to know and to understand that my family had something to do with helping slaves escape to freedom. That made me proud. Now that is courage, and that is purpose, and that's my DNA. So my connection to God came from my ancestors. My connection to courage and purpose, DNA. It's in my bloodline. So when I look at my life, I really have to pause because it kind of trips me up sometimes. Like these are not just stories. These are things that were documented. These are things that were widely known. So I think of me and I go, why I don't settle? Because that's Virginia Riley Holloway protecting what's hers and knowing her wealth. Why I fight for what I believe in? Well, that's Solomon, my fourth great grandfather, risking everything to do what's right. Why I have a heart of service. Joseph Holloway, teaching, helping, and giving. Why I encourage people to be a better version of themselves, that's my program, my mentoring program, putting your best foot forward. That same spirit of leadership and guidance, that's a part of my DNA. It's all in my bloodline. So I come from people who had land, who had wealth, who built something. Joseph Holloway, he owned a general store. And he and my grandmother, they were they were strong pillars in the community. So my sister reminds me of something that I said years ago. She would laugh. I remember when I said it, but I said it because I meant it. I said once, I said, you know, I am not meant to be poor. And she laughed. But I really felt like that. I really, I really felt like that, y'all. But that's not just talk. That's something in my DNA recognizing that I don't come from being broke, I don't come from not having. That's the truth. So DNA may tell you where you come from, right? But your decisions determine where you go. So you may come from alcoholism and you still choose to drink. You may come from strength and still choose to settle. Your body may react, right? Your instincts may pull you, but God gives us free will, and your choices still matter. So understanding my DNA helped me understand the harder truths. So while all of that is true, what's also true is high blood pressure runs in my DNA. My mother, my father, my grandfather, they all had high blood pressure. I have high blood pressure. Alcoholism ran in my family, mental health struggles. These things really exist in my family. So by knowing that I'm very careful in what I do, I move differently because I understand. Now I want you to sit with this for a second. Because everything I've shared, it's not just about me, it's about what might be showing up in you. If you find yourself maybe always anxious, always on edge, where does that come from? If you find yourself tolerating things, you shouldn't ask yourself, where is this coming from? If you feel like you're meant for more, but can't quite explain why, ask, where does it come from? If your family struggles with with maybe certain patterns like like health issues, addiction, relationships, where does it come from? And if you have a strong intuition, right? Like a deep sense of knowing what you know, ask yourself, where is this coming from? Because once you start asking that question, things begin to really make sense. You stop seeing yourself maybe as a problem. Because sometimes, sometimes when we're asking ourselves questions about why we are moving in life like we're moving, we think we're the problem. No. You stop seeing yourself as the problem and you start understanding the root of it. So here's the part where I want you to grab a pen and a pad and let's go to the lab. These are the four pillars. These are four things that you can do to really help you in understanding your DNA. Number one, explore your DNA, ask questions, talk to elders, and demand the truth. You guys, it's it's literally a matter of life and death. We really do have to, if you're fortunate, fortunate enough to have elders that are wise and that will be courageous enough to speak the hard truths to you, demand the truth from them. Sit down, take time to ask questions. Number two, connect the patterns. Look at your family's health, their habits, behaviors, because patterns really do tell a story. They really, really do. Number three, understand yourself without judgment, right? Like your tendencies didn't start with you. Learn them. Number four, make intentional decisions. Your DNA may explain you, but it does not excuse you. So for me, I know that I have high blood pressure. I know high blood pressure runs in my family. I know heart disease runs in my DNA. So why do I choose to eat pig feet on the holiday? Yes, that is my guilty pleasure. Listen, I love pig feet, okay? I said it, I it's my guilty pleasure. I do judge me if you want to, whatever. But I do it in moderation. But again, that's a choice. I know that that's not good for me. I know it's not good for me, but I've got to make better decisions. If I wanna, if I wanna stick around, I've gotta make healthy decisions. So diet and exercise is extremely, extremely important for me. It really is. So, guys, your DNA, it's not your limitation, it is truly a blueprint. It's your information that you can use. And what you do with that information, truly, it is your responsibility. Now, I know I talked a lot about my my um my ancestors in this episode, but if you want to go deeper, I go into this more in detail in my book, my lineage, my story, and the connection of being black and indigenous. I just want to thank you guys. Thank you for listening to this episode. I really do, from the bottom of bottom, excuse me, of my heart appreciate it. So one. Once again, this is She is Shantae of the Putting Your Best Foot Forward series. Where guys we're gonna do the work and we're gonna do it until we're satisfied. So until next time, put your best foot forward.