reconnected

David, Greg, me, Sue, Charles

when I was a child
my family was large 
there were 6 of us in the Don Ellis family
there were 5 in the Jerry Ellis family
there were 4 in the Joe Ellis family
my Aunt Judy, grandma and Papa John rounded out the group
it seems to me we spent every Sunday together

summer days were spent at Turkey Foot Lake picnicking and swimming
other days were spent at my grandma's
if the weather was good we cousins were outside
climbing trees, running in the field or following the creek bank
if we couldn't be outside we were crammed in her upstairs apartment
adults crowded around the table playing cards
I remember playing jacks on her stair stoop
and sitting grinding walnuts for her to use in her special cookies
I remember watching Lawrence Welk in her small living room

slowly our numbers decreased
as did the frequency of our gatherings
my Uncle Joe got divorced
then my Uncle Jerry did the same
my Papa John passed
when my mom and dad divorced 
I lost most contact with my grandma
 and aunt until after I married Bill

disconnected 
that has been an accurate one word description of our family
even before Bill and I moved our family to KY 
the relationships with my own brothers was tenuous
my children did not get the same experiences with their extended family
that I enjoyed as a child
I grieved that for all of us

slowly my relationships with my brothers has grown

and today something extra special happened

I reconnected with one of my Uncle Jerry's daughters

she came up to see Aunt Judy and I invited her to a picnic 

she bravely agreed to go with me

my brothers, sister-in-law, a nephew, a niece and great niece were there

it was a beautiful day to do some reminiscing and reconnecting