The gods visit the sins of the fathers upon the children.
What I leave behind has a life of its own.
I am descended from a very long line my mother once foolishly listened to.
In a way, being born is a sort of ecological contagion. When you have longevity of family, we remember our grandfathers and maybe our great-grandfathers. We somehow don't have the capacity in modern life to remember further than that. All of the ramifications of their lives have an effect on us, and we're not aware of it.
Undeservedly you will atone for the sins of your fathers.
This younger generation is paying in many cases, for the sins of its elders.
She was referring to the European children in World War II.
Whatever my ancestors did to you, none of them consulted me.
We're still benefiting from the sacrifices of people long dead, but we're also suffering from their errors.