Those Were The Days “A Circle of Love”

For the past dozen or so years my wife has spent the entire month of July in Windsor visiting with her siblings. I would drive Kay there and sometime around the first of August drive back and bring her home. This year she decided not to go, possibly because of her and my advanced years, but mostly as Kay explained at length, she did not want me driving the long distance there and back alone. It really didn’t bother me but it was her vacation therefore her decision. I knew she wanted to go but not for an entire month so I suggested we go together, get a motel for a week, and visit with as many relatives as we could then drive home together. She thought that was a great idea so we went ahead and made the reservations and arrangements.

We arrived on Sunday, returning home the following Saturday and would you believe in the five days of visiting we met with twenty-seven relatives, some whom we had not seen in over twenty years? Nieces, nephews, cousins, in-laws, out-laws, you name it, and we embraced them all. Thank you to two nieces, Cathy  and Lucette, who put on splendid dinners, inviting a house full; and to cousin Gloria who arranged for other cousins to gather with us at her house. The drives there and back were uneventful, the car ran beautifully, it was 34 degrees Celsius but the air conditioner in the motel room and car coped and we were comfortable the entire week. Although time did speed by, we had such a good time, grateful to many who worked very hard to put the memorable week together. So you know what? Next year, God willing and the weather fine, we just may do it again.

The conversations were vast covering places we went, people we knew and memories we thought were long forgotten. We laughed when we discussed some amusing oddities that happened during our various childhoods, and surprised with exciting events that have occurred in recent years. Of course our families have lost members, all of whom we lovingly remembered, bringing to life the good times and sad times we shared way back then, and now.           

One of my cousins asked if I knew his wife had a crush on me when she was around twelve years old  (blush, blush), yes I knew but I reminded him who she married. Another cousin broke up with laughter when I remembered her mother running out to proudly show my uncle a potty that held her very first – ah, poo-poo. We had good and bad in our family tree and I think we mentioned every one of them; Grandpa Sanders who was Windsor’s Park Superintendent and overseer of the famous Jackson Park, and a much discussed uncle who was the family alcoholic.

My wife and I decided to go to Windsor for a week, we let a few relatives know, and how thankful we are to all twenty seven who showed up at the scrumptious dinners, the gatherings over coffee and for the memories were able to relive and create. To those who are reading this, take a week, visit the past and relatives you have almost forgotten – the reminiscing made us young again.      

Russ Sanders
epigram@nexicom.net