Well, I’m back. It was a beautiful wedding and a delightful visit with Isaac’s family. In between the wedding and the reception, I snuck off with my aunt for a family history tour (what a good sport – I hadn’t spoken with her for years and years, then she got a call from my dad that I was nearby and would like to spend the afternoon with her).
I never knew any of my grandparents and I can barely connect names with faces when it comes to extended family, but oh how I’ve longed for those relationships! In three-hours’ time, my aunt was able to show me the home or business of two sets of great grandparents and one set of great great grandparents. We popped in for visits with 3 of my dad’s cousins (two of which are his ‘double cousins’ – his mom’s older sister married his dad’s older brother!). Oh how I wanted to latch onto their legs and beg to be their granddaughter! We only visited for a few minutes, but I was choked up at parting.
The most emotional part of the day was meeting my grandmother’s sister, Joyce. Currently 96, she was only one year older than my grandmother -- they were very close. I learned that they shared a room in the attic of their home and were the same grade in school -- their grandfather had donated the land for the one-room schoolhouse they attended. My grandparents met in school, and before they married, Joyce and my great uncle double-dated with them.
What a wealth -- my goodness, where has she been all of my life? How come I never realized that she existed? Here was this woman before me who held so much of my family history in her heart – so many of the stories and memories I’ve longed for from a grandparent. I wish we’d met two decades ago and I had grabbed onto her leg back then -- I’m sure she would have said, “Yes, I’ll be your grandmother!” Now, at her age, she’s fading, as are the memories of her time. I’m grateful to have met her and for that momentary glimpse of what my grandmother might have been like if she hadn’t passed four decades too early.
(Click here to read more about each photo -- including one very sheepish memory)
