Thursday, September 3, 2009

Connections

In the end of July two of my Aunts came to visit.  R lives in Colorado and S lives in New Hampshire and even though we're close to New Hampshire we just don't get to visit very often.  These two women are my Mom's sisters. My Mom was one of those people that made sure everyone was keeping in touch within her family. When she died, we lost some of that.  Not that we don't ever communicate - it's just that we all have our own lives and we're not as good as keeping up with each other.

So I was really thrilled when my Aunt R said she was making a trip East and was going to get S and come and stay with us for a couple of days.  It had been a long time since either one of them had seen the kids, so I was especially psyched for them to get to spend some time with Wonderboy and the Pixie, as well as the Mr. and myself.  These women are so special to me.  Not only because they are both really cool women, but also because of the connection I feel with my Mom when I am with them.  It's been twenty-six years since my Mom died, so my memories of her have dimmed a bit - relying more on pictures and stories.

But when I'm with my Aunts, I can hear her voice in their laughter.  I see the curve of her face in theirs.  I picture her, lounging on our couch after hunting through the shelves of cookbooks as R and S did - reveling in some of the Mr's and some I inherited from my Mom.  I see how she may have been with my own children - listening in that teacher's way to what they are saying and delighting in their words and actions.

It was a laid-back visit of the best kind.  One where we all got to hang out and just be with each other.  I may not always be the best about phone calls or emails, but I think they know how important they are to me.   And that in their way, they bring her back to me again.

13 comments:

minivan soapbox said...

Best kind of visit...I'm sorry about your Mama, but glad you've got those women in your life.

Carolyn...Online said...

Aww. That's sweet. I hope you had a great time. You're on a whole family-visit-whirlwind.

bernthis said...

sounds like a blast. How great to have them around.

Captain Dumbass said...

At least you still have them to help remember her by.

Zip n Tizzy said...

Choked up.
So glad you had a nice visit!

Unknown said...

Very sweet. Enjoy the time with your aunts!

for a different kind of girl said...

Sounds like it was a lovely time. This post gave me pangs because there's a side of my family I very rarely see because the person that really connected the lot of us isn't there any longer to make those things happen. I hope you get the opportunity to see your aunts again soon.

Leslie said...

This choked me up a bit because today I watched my great-aunt at my Grandmother's gravesite. It broke my heart for whichever of my girls is the last.

Maggie May said...

this is so touching. i'm sorry you lost your mom too soon, and glad you have those aunts

HeatherPride said...

Sounds like a good time! Sorry it took me so long to stop by!

I felt a little bit of this over the weekend - my husband's mother died in a car accident when I was pregnant with our first, so she never got to meet either of our kids. Over the weekend we got together with my husband's aunt, who cried when she saw Claire. She said she looked just like my husband's mother when she was little! It was a bittersweet moment.

So do I put you on my blogroll? Are you still private? Let me know your thoughts on that, if it's OK or if you'd rather not!

The Stiletto Mom said...

Ahhhhh....this made me cry a little bit. I hate that we share this little bit of personal history. And I so wish I had someone to remind me of my mom. Instead I have to remind myself that I'm just like her every time I do something goofy or get uncontrollable giggles...which is not so bad.

xoxo

anymommy said...

This really made me think both about how I'd really like my kids to know my aunts and about how lucky I am to have my mom with me.

msprimadonna67 said...

Laidback visits with family are the best kinds. Sometimes its in the quiet moments we share--through a word, an expression, a tone of voice--that we form the closest connections and solidify memories for the times to come.