Went up to Pennsylvania a couple of weeks ago to visit my niece Laura and her family. It was a real family weekend...basketball practice, basketball games, birthday parties, piano lessons, gymnastics meets, family bowling. It's been a lot of years since I lived life at that pace! It was exhausting, but loads of fun. I loved watching John and Eric at all their activities. Each visit I get to know them a little better...still have lots of years to catch up on. Laura's husband Martin continues to impress me with his kindness and devotion to his family...I look forward to knowing him better too as time goes on.
Laura planned a family lunch to celebrate John's recent eleventh birthday. Laura's Aunt Nancy and Uncle Roger joined us as well as my sister Amy, so we had the opportunity to visit for a couple of hours.
This visit brought with it another reunion. I saw my niece Jill (Laura's sister) for the first time in forty years! Needless to say she's changed a lot since she was six!! She was in town visiting...combining a work trip with pleasure...from Colorado. She is a warm, friendly, beautiful, high energy woman. It felt so good to see her and hug her after all these years and to rekindle the family connection.
Of course I aways enjoy my one-on-one time with Laura...she's more like a second daughter to me than a niece. We are alike in ways and provide great sounding boards to each other. I was able to get some good perspectives on my current "man situation" from both the therapist side of her and the niece side.
Every time I visit I am swept into another pocket of family...one I have been away from for a long time. I love it!
