D ear Auntie
One of the disadvantages of living out of town is that I don’t get to see the extended family frequently. On the positive side this makes each visit special and memorable. I eagerly look forward to every trip to my hometown.
I love to meet with the cousins my age and catch up on their lives in real time. It’s hard to get a true picture of what everyone is up to with phone calls Skype and snail mail. Often I’m unaware of changes that have taken place in the lives of various relatives. However when I come in for a long-awaited visit I’m able to observe shifts that occurred incrementally which went unnoticed by those closer to the scene. Family dynamics have vastly altered kids seem to have grown up overnight and worry lines and gray hair have worked their way onto what I recall as young faces.
Last time I was in for a simchah time constraints didn’t allow my family to take the hour drive out to your home. As the simchah was not on your side of the family it looked like I might not get to see you at all. Then Savta excitedly informed me “Uncle Chaim is driving in with the kids for a family dinner!”
Auntie’s not coming? I thought with disappointment. I guess she can’t leave her father for so long. (From what I’ve gathered via the grapevine he’s been much more medically fragile since his last hospitalization.) It must be really challenging for Auntie to be so tied down now that her father lives with her.
