Anna had enjoyed a lazy afternoon flipping through some of the journals of her ancestors. She'd read stories of women, and the occasional man, who had joined the world she herself now lived in. Her ancestors had seen the world from several angles, from different cities, from varied positions. There'd been leaders and speakers, writers and hands, storytellers and slobs. They'd had short lives and long lives and one had even somehow managed to take on the mantle of Godmother. And they'd seen such different things to the things Anna had seen.

Reading about the lives of her ancestors, and beginning to understand some of their stories, Anna felt inspired to make good on the one thing her family tended to keep consistent - their appearances on the street - to speak some of the thoughts bubbling up in her mind. With that in mind, and two dozen very talkative ghosts on her shoulders, she headed out to the streets, following in their footsteps.

"So, I was reading the journals of some of my ancestors this afternoon. They've been around this world three, four years or so. And even in that time, they've seen changes in our world. The districts that we live in, my namesake, my great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great Grandmother Anna saw become a part of this world. Imagine it! A world where a five minute taxi ride around town didn't exist, a world where the only way to make a buck off a drug deal was to fly across our country!"

Anna's eyes lit up with the ghosts of the past floating by her.

"Imagine a world where a flight across our great country took only a couple of hours, not the twelve or so it takes now?! I don't know how the ancestors of old did it, but they sure had this travel thing down pat. Our organisations spread out across more cities too - imagine it. St Louis, Boston... and less of us filled the cities than we do now. Now, with the districts, three Godfathers can live side by side. Three Godfathers, with a couple of crews each. But back then, there was just one Godfather, with maybe three crews around them. Fifty in a crew too! Strange old times.

I know my great-great-great-great-great-great-great Grandmother Ziva saw some sights too. She saw FIVE Godfathers live in a city side by side. Can you imagine it!? Cpt-Harris, ChaosSpike, Lynch, Solastalgia and JakeLuciano, all living together for a time. Even now our world cannot support that kind of population. Different times, different eras.

And I know, from the things my ancestors wrote in their journals, that things were different in our world in the years before their times. I've heard tales of 200 men to a HQ, of strange soulless men who did the bidding of their crew leaders, who made up numbers without name or thought. Of great wars and huge take downs, of groups who dominated and ruled. 

It got me wondering. We all receive the journals of our ancestors to guide us in our ways across these worlds. What pieces of history are contained in those books; what changes have your line seen?"

An interesting proposition, Anna. In terms of the structure of this world, my line has seen relatively little change. The ways with which Halfpenny, the man who stepped off the boat all that time ago and travelled to Detroit to take his place under Raptor was taught, are still largely relevant now. The ways you speak of prior to the division of our cities are before the time of my ancestors. However, my line has seen the expansion of our way of life to two other cities, Las Vegas and Los Angeles: seen by many as a rather controversial business decision at the time. However, while we may still hold our opinions about operations in such cities, they remain active to this day, one of them occupied at this very moment. Of course, it's natural that we become attached to what we know; change is against our basic human instinct for stability. All of us will have at some stage been hostile to change, whether it be in our interest in the long term or not.

The notable changes my line has seen have been in terms of those at the helm. Dynasties of course come and go. Some are notorious, ruthless, cold blooded. Some we no longer speak of. But all have to earn their moment in the limelight. And that is, in my opinion, the beauty of our world. While it often feels like everything is familiar, even the same as it always was, it is in fact constantly evolving. Change keeps us all fresh. A world without it would be a world not worth living in.

My family line has always liked changes, so much even that my ancestors left this side of the world for a long time and it's only been a short while since my family works in the America's once more. The change I'd like to mention is that of inner family organisation and responsibilities. Where Anna says the era with giant HQ's were filled with soulless men, mere numbers in the giant scheme of things... the stories my grandparents told me were filled with mentions about subcrews and working together within it. I have to admit, probably there were a lot of soulless men, but I don't remember it as such.

With averaged sizes families of 30 to 40 members, the need for subcrews, might seem less now compared to back then, but I still think that today people can benefit from the system. The gap between being a Gangster and being in the upper structure of a family is much larger these days. I remember a discussion not too long ago, where the position of a Left Hand man was almost joked about, so insignificant in responsibilities it often is in this time. Back then, there were a lot more positions, that carried quite some responsibilities. Keeping your people active and involved, help them climb the ranks in this place, keep up with donations. Families were pretty social. I remember the family bars on IRC Avenue always being busy with people.

I feel that inner family organisation back then got people more involved, throughout all the ranks in a family. I think that led to more people really discovering what this life has to offer. 

Truth be told, it's a while ago and the stories may have faded in my memory perhaps, but that's how I remember those times. It's a past I can enjoy looking back too, but I live today. I want to make the most out of things now, the past can serve as inspiration for that.