My Family Reunions
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| My Grandmother and some the Cousins |
When I was growing up, we had a picnic every summer to celebrate my grandmother's birthday in July. My aunts and uncles and 23 cousins would gather at The Farm my grandmother lived on to play and talk and eat. The Cousins would play in the creek and catch minnows and crawdads. The Aunts and Uncles would talk. And of course, we would all eat.
As the years passed, we grew up and the picnics stopped. There seemed to be too many other things going on in our "grown up" lives to be able to come, and my grandmother had passed away.
However several years later, we began them again, still at The Farm. This time, many of the 23 Cousins had been joined by spouses and children. The next generation of Children found the creek a great place to play. They caught minnows and crawdads just as their parents had. The Aunts and Uncles smiled as they watched their grandkids and they talked. The Cousins now played horseshoes and croquet and tried to make sure the Children were okay in the creek. But mostly we talked. And of course, we would all eat.
And this year, we gathered again. Our picnic was at a park and not at The Farm, so the little ones played in the mud puddles instead of the creek. Many of the Aunts and Uncles have passed away, but were remembered in pictures and stories. The Cousins were talking about colleges and empty nests and the Children were texting their friends. But mostly we talked. And of course, we all ate.
