This isn't what you might think. Louise, Floyd (dad) and I are not heading back to Denver, but rather I am talking about my roots. This morning one of my first thoughts was that of the mini-series from a couple of decades ago, Roots. Well, today, the three of us, along with two of my three brothers, are doing some re-tracing of steps in our lives when we catch up on our "roots." We are taking along with us my dad's sister and meeting up with one of our cousins to spend the next couple of days retracing the family history. We will, on this second anniversary of the passing of our mother/wife explore dad's past with his young family. We will be visiting Colville, Curlew, and possibly visiting Danville. Colville is where I was born and left when I was in the middle of second grade. Danville was where my dad was born. Curlew is where he, his sister and the rest of the family, now departed, grew up. We will visit two separate cemeteries where our grandparents and great-grandparents were born.
We will also drive by and visit the two homes where our young family lived, the home we remember visiting grandma Elsie, and also the old homestead that my dad's family lived on prior to grandpa Charlie's death in 1935.
The last time I visited the area with a couple of my own children about 12 or so years ago, I was surprised how settling it all was. It wasn't morbid to consider the passing of family members or where they have loved and lived, it was grounding. I felt in a way something I had not experience before, that I belong to a longer line of succession, a connection to a very personal past. These people were not just stories or faded memories, they had had their day in the sun, living in their ever-present "now," loving and living and experiencing joys, sorrows, challenging and triumphs. We see black and white pictures of them and the surrounding they live in, but they experience, as we do, colors, smells, touch and all of life. Yes, a different time, a different culture, but the major difference was technology. Their was not a black and white life. It was full. Roots.
I am very much looking forward to this weekend, celebrating life, even while visiting grave sites and old memories.
One of my brothers, Craig, has not been up in this area since our family moved in December of 1959. It is a special time for him and us. Last night we experienced a great family gathering, not only for our little entourage from Colorado and southern California, but also those from Washington State. Several cousins and associated families gathered with the patriarch and matriarch of the family-whole. We got reacquainted, some for the first time since their childhood. It was a very enjoyable experience, a better experience of a different kind than our travels up the coast that we so much enjoyed.
On Monday, we plan to head into Canada. Roving charges for internet is not kindly, so it is my plan to take a hiatus from posting. I will resume once in Alaska. In the meanwhile for the many of you that are looking at the blog, but who have yet to sign up (that is most of you, I understand) you may want to reconsider and sign-up. What this will do for you is automatic notification when a new blog is created, and also, an ability through the blog to leave comments, which I would enjoy.
I hope all of my readers have a great holiday weekend ahead. I would encourage you to catch up on your past, experience some roots and enjoy the ever-present life you are living right now. Kevin
No comments:
Post a Comment