Woohoo! I was glad to see that there is going to be another family reunion this year!! I was so disappointed not to be able to make it last year due for a couple of reasons...the main being I was still recovering from neck surgery and the long drive would have been too hard. Unfortunately I heard it wasn't a very good turnout either, and I'm sure the loss of Grannie's house made it hard for people to want to come.
However, as hard as it is to know the house is no longer there and to see the landscape change,...I sincerely hope that the number will be more this year. Lord willing, Paul, Kevin and I are planning on coming down this year.
Since the beginning of these reunions in 1992, we've lost mothers, fathers, aunts and uncles. Uncle Arnold and Uncle Johnny lost brothers and sisters. Some of us had previously lost brothers and parents who would have relished being able to come. I know my Bobby, was estactic when the news came that Uncle Arnold was wanting to start having reunions at Warfield. He was looking forward so much to being able to come up. However, he died the year before that happened, and I remember how hard it was for me to come to first one in 1992 and know he wasn't there. It hurt, and I cried, but I had family...cousins who hugged me and let me cry on their shoulders. I saw family I hadn't seen in years. Throughout the years, I've seen the family starting to bond again, catch up on the past, help each other through our losses that would occur between each reunion, and we've seen new generations growing.
Families are precious,....time goes too fast. Many of you live closer to each other and can take seeing each other for granted,....but I would ask you to please not do that. Please make an effort for those of us who miss the closeness, who miss seeing our loved ones, who miss the connections to their past that help them continue in the present and move on to the future. Keep the memories of those who have gone before us and loved seeing us all together alive, as they would want us to do.
Make this the biggest reunion we've seen in along time and let's make more family memories!!!!
I love you all.....Jeannie