As a child, my sisters and I spent most of our summers between Kansas and Wisconsin. We had family in both places, so that shouldn't be a surprise, but as a narcissistic child I often met people and didn't have the faintest clue who they were. For example, one of my dad's cousins lived in the trailer on my grandparents' farm and for the longest time I did not realize she was, in fact, related. The thought never occurred to me. I never saw these people more than once or twice every summer. Why should I care?
Living in Wisconsin now means I see these people quite often, actually. I see Gloria every few weeks, stay in touch with a few of my second cousins through Facebook, and am slowly getting to know extended family that I had just barely known a couple years ago. I have become privy to all kinds of family events and, whether I like it or not, clan warfare.
One not-so-special day in March, I received an invitation to a surprise birthday celebration from Patti, another one of Dad's cousins. We would be celebrating her mother's (my great-aunt Joyce's) 85th birthday. It would mean four hours on the road - two hours there and another two back - but it would also be a good chance to mingle with relations. Besides, with Gloria out of the country and my father in Alaska, no one from my grandmother's line would be present. (Not that anyone would have missed us if we could not come - the place was packed - but it helped with family P.R. to make an appearance.)
Most of the people there I did not know. They may have recognized me as "Eunice's granddaughter", but I could not label them. Some of them were no doubt extended family, and others were friends. For instance, I met one of Joyce's high school friends and her granddaughter, who had driven her to the party.
The boys, of course, sniffed out a playground and, after lunch, spent a significant portion of their time outside, coming in only for cake. Joyce wandered the room, spending time with friends and sharing stories. Trivia questions about events in Joyce's life had been placed on every table and she affirmed that when she was four years old, the doctor came to her house and removed her tonsils right at her kitchen table. (No doctor would be able to get away with that nowadays!)
By now, dear reader, you are probably wondering why I even mentioned clan warfare several paragraphs back. After all, it seemed like everyone had a marvelous time. Allow me only to say that with the family celebrations and fun also comes the family rumors and talk, which I had not ever expected to become part of. Perhaps it is because I am still sort of an outsider, or maybe it is because this person thought I had some clout within the family; regardless of the reason, it was surprising. Robinson jokingly called the whole situation "Brushgate".
Truly, it will be very interesting to see what the future of family relationships holds.
Blessed be.
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