40 years and over 5000 miles

It is hard to know where to start the story. It could be 40 years ago or 60 or maybe it could be over 80 years ago if you really want to get into the details. For the sake of simplicity, I'll go with 40.

In 1970 (or 6 B.C. if you base your calendar on when I was born), my dad flew to England with his mom to visit relatives. Grandma's twin brother, Gordon, and his wife and children were all living in England and Holland at the time. It was the first time that my dad met his extended family and the first time my grandmother had been back to England since she left over 20 years earlier. By all accounts, the visit was great. Dad has talked about that visit numerous times over the years.

Though my dad has had little communication with his English relatives since that visit 40 years ago, he decided a side-trip to Holland would be in order when he came to Germany. He notified his cousins that he would like to see them and then through email and Facebook communication everything was set up for a mini-family reunion. Cousin Peter along with his wife and daughter made arrangements to come down from England, mom and dad, the boys and I drove up from Germany, and we all met in a small town in Holland where Cousins Mary and Wilma live.

As we were driving toward Holland, we had no idea what to expect upon arrival. We didn't even know basic details about them like if they were married or had children. We had our escape plans in place just in case things got dodgy and we went into the experience expecting nothing and hoping for the best. As far as I saw it, I was just along for the ride. My dad was there to meet the family and I was just praying that my kids didn't cause some type of international family feud and that we would have enough time after visiting the family to see some tourist sites in Amsterdam.

My prayers were answered. The boys were good and we did see Amsterdam, but in the end, it was my visit with extended family that was the highlight of the trip. I came along too late to meet my Great Uncle Gordon and his wife, as they both have passed away, but I did have the pleasure of meeting 3 generations of cousins! My dad's cousins are now in their 50's and 60's, their children are my age, and their grandchildren are just babies. As we sat around the table chatting about all things under the sun, this one family represented English, Dutch and American cultures. We heard stories of the past and looked at old photographs, we talked about what is going on in our lives today and upon saying "cheerio" we promised not to wait another 40 years in the future to meet again.

I was left in awe of the experience. I really can't describe all the things that were running through my head during our visit. I do feel a small connection to them now, I definitely plan to visit with them again when our travels head in their direction, and I am truly blessed that I had the opportunity to accompany my dad on this visit.

Who would have thought that wooden shoes, tulips, windmills, canals, and Amsterdam would lose to Wilma, Mary, Peter, Christine, Nina, Sander, Chantal, Jack, Mark, Lisset, and Fabien?