I know this blog is mostly about getting through hurricane Katrina and then losing our house again to the fire, but, this is another subject that has happened within the last ten years.
Loss is something every family goes through and has to face, in one way or another. Mine has just experienced a lot in a small time frame. This family loss brought about the realization that we hadn't seen my dad's side of the family, like his mom's family, in almost 10 years. They didn't all know about our house fire and sure didn't realize how much I had changed either. Of course there would be reactions, but didn't expect some to not even recognize me to the point of a reintroduction.
I slowly remembered some of the family by name even. Come on, we hadn't seen them in 6 years. Some of the older cousins had passed away and others have been diagnosed with various forms of cancer. Coming together for a funeral really did turn into a family reunion. We were able to catch up with people we hadn't seen in years, spend time with them and realize that we truly never were forgotten.
The funniest thing that happened, though, I didn't even realized had happened. My dad mentioned it to me the next day. One of the female cousins had approached him about me during the service. She asked him, "Is that Kristen?" With how he is, I wasn't expecting a decent response, but, he redeemed himself. He replied, "Yes it is. She goes to the gym every day." So, obviously he does pay attention and does see the hard work I've put into my health. He just doesn't know how to show it.
The other type of reaction was expected. Some of the family had come into town right around when my grandfather, my dad's dad, had passed away. They had seen my progress up until that point. So, when I saw them again today. some 3 years later, I was told things like, "You are looking good!", "Keep up the great work," and the faces that went along with them were priceless.
It was a service for my great uncle Gerald, who was the step brother, partially, to my grandmother Sadie. Her mom had died in child birth. Her father met MiMi, who ended up being his second wife, and she adopted my grandmother into the family. I know it is an odd thing to understand and we know little about my grandmother Sadie's parents, but, we know she was loved. That family may have not seen or spoken to us in a while, but they are still our family. I was glad we were able to see them again but sad it was under those circumstances.
