Family Reunions

Im headed off to the great state of Michigan for a family get together on my moms side. I find these things somewhat daunting.There is so much anticipation. Its exciting to get a look at all the folks you are related too, compare freckles and feet and stances. But it's all so harried. Do this, do that, too busy to talk quietly and at length with everyone. Inevitably you miss catching up with Cousin x but get a really good visit in with Aunt o.Funny, there are always some in the family you are really glad to share genes with and then there are some you wonder what bus stop they got on at. I suppose they think that about me too.
Reunions are getting harder with more distance between family. Gas prices and airline fees are costly. Our lives are soooo busy. How important are these gatherings? Young families tend to dismiss these events as another picnic and a hassle. But where else will you here about Cousin Davids Silver Star in WW2, the action that cost his life? Where will you learn that grandma Daisy read novels to her husband, who wasnt able to read. When would you here about the cousin who got run over by a train, or that Great uncle Layton Newel (Dugan) served in France in WW1.When would you hear that our grandparents first met when they were 7 years old? And that drop of Irish is real! The more you learn about the people that came before you, the more you tend to learn about the times they were living in. What was happening...World Wars that decided our political futures....Depressions that guided our economy and business life...medical treatments that were archaic or nonexistent. These gatherings give us perspective and a dose of reality. We live in a fabulous time in an astonishing country and we shouldnt take it for granted. We relate to stories told to us to pass on this history. And we get that at reunions and gatherings. Besides, there is always the fabulous food, and the baseball games where the little kids always get a home run.....