#8

[cosmolinguist]

We hadn't heard from my dad's brother and his wife since my grandma's funeral a year and a half ago.

Mom always predicted that once their parents were dead his family probably wouldn't have much to do with one another. We didn't even know his sister moved back to Minnesota until she'd been here a couple of months, but at least she did eventually re-establish contact with us and we've had her and her boyfriend out here for dinner, or vice versa. It's nice. But from Dad's brother's family, nothing. Mom even commented on how terrible it was of them not to even send Chris a birthday card when he was their godson as well as their nephew and my mom sent cards for their kids.

But we called them Thursday or Friday and my aunt cried and my uncle called my dad when he got home from work, to make sure his brother was okay. They were here both Sunday and Monday, and they even made tentative plans with us to do something around Christmas.

So, maybe Chris did that.


My mom's oldest sister and her husband got a divorce a couple of years ago. My grandparents are firmly on their daughter's side, but Mom says that's just because this has always been their favorite daughter. Mom's still bitter because she got all the new clothes when they were growing up, she got to drive (my mom didn't learn until she was 30 or something), she gets money from their parents now, blah blah blah. Mom thought her former brother-in-law was unfairly vilified in the divorce.

But Dad called him because he thought he should know. He always liked Chris, and even saw him a few times when Chris had his college job in Mankato. Dad said we wanted him to come to the funeral, but we didn't think he would. We thought he'd be scared of my grandparents. And he had good reason to be! But I did hear my grandma say "I'm going over to talk to Phil. It's time to forgive." She made my grandpa shake his hand too. He wasn't happy about it, but he did it. (Grandpa also said Phil shouldn't be allowed in our house with everyone else afterwards, but no one listened to him.)

So, maybe Chris kinda did that, too.

Comments

[quuf.livejournal.com]

What a lovely thing to read at day's end.

[sporksoma.livejournal.com]

Divorces are so stupid. They make everything so stupid.

[xianrex.livejournal.com]

Man, it's nearly impossible for some family issues to be hurdled. But it's amazing when it happens.

[ihavemanyskills.livejournal.com]

We find things all the time that would not have happened if we had not lost Steven. We'd give it all back to have him here but we also know that so many positive things have happened since then because of losing him.
How very wonderful that you are able to see the goodness that come come from losing a loved one.

[ruintherain.livejournal.com]

Loss has a way of doing that. When my grandmother passed a few years ago, all of her children were together for the first time in years. The Magnificent 7, they call themselves. Some fences were mended, and while there is still some distance, the decades old anger is now gone.

Although we don't know each other, I am sorry for your loss. My thoughts have been with you and your family since I first read the news on Andrew's LineJournal.