... funny?....

oh come now, someday they'll go to a family reunion and laugh and laugh and laugh together about the good ol'days... when one person ruined another person's life, and then the other person sent the other to jail... I don't know what's funnier than that!?

--Ray

Actually, that kind of sounds similar what the family of my grandfather's second wife did to his home after he died.

He had re-married after being a widower for probably close to a decade. The lady and her "children" (they were the age of my mom) were some of the most hateful, nasty people around, and they had nothing but contempt for anything that had to do with my grandmother or her children.

We're pretty sure that this widow married my widowered grandfather thinking he had money stashed away somewhere. And, when they found he didn't, well... He was dirt poor. So, when his health turned for the worse, she seperated from him. And, even though they had had no dealings with him or the family for a couple years, when he died when I was about 12, they went back and "broke" into the house (though I don't believe there was actual proof found other than there was no sign of forced entry, which means it was someone who had a key, like the one this woman never gave back when she left). They ransacked it, stole anything that could have been of possible value at a garage sale / antique type mall and then destroyed or otherwise defaced and damaged anything that could have had value (monetarily or otherwise heirloom value to my grandfather's family) they couldn't haul away with them.

They were church members too... Remember my mom telling me that grandpa had admitted to his daughters shortly before he died that marrying that woman was probably one of the biggest mistakes he made in his life, and he figured that may have been part of why he suffered bed ridden unable to care for himself the last couple years of his life. She also said that there had been some sort of rivalry from many decades ago between this woman and my grandmother... perhaps from before my grandparents were even married.

Well, amongst the grandkids on my dad's side of the family, the big joke has always been that the term "family meeting" that was held by all our parents was just a euphemism for the annual "family fight". And it would be over the stupidest things because no one was willing to look at things from other folks viewpoints.

e.g. let's hold the reunion next year on a different weekend... no, no can't do that cuz we've got this or that going on... let's hold the reunion at a different place... no, no can't do that cuz this place is soooo wonderful... let's do something different for the activities and add some variety... no, no we can't change any of that cuz this is what people want to do... let's have some different food... no, no this is what everyone likes to eat... Those are the typical ones. Then there is the squabbles over what sort of poses are necessary for the family pictures to be taken before the reunion breaks up. The one that was over the top was them arguing about whether or not to put their own elderly parents in an assisted living facility -- with them right there and not having much of a say!

Don't get me wrong, I love my extended family, but after some of the things I've seen and experienced at the reunions, I have no desire to go to the reunions any longer. Last one I went to was about 15 years ago. Of course, distance has something to do with it too...

It is interesting to me that in a country with the most personal freedoms available, our families are the least connected together.

--Ray

Thankfully, the only family reunion I ever had to attend was my best friends back when I was 16 and I spent most of the time either fishing or smoochin with his female cousin.

Cat: My dad's family is from Dayton Idaho! It's "close" to the bustling metropolis of Preston too. I know where Weston is! My dad probably beat up your dad! Hahahaha!

--Ray