"Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter, and those who matter don't mind." ~ Dr. Seuss

NORTHEASTERN OREGON

NORTHEASTERN OREGON

Monday, July 18, 2011

EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN

I’m not the first to say that life is simple; you’re born, you breathe, you eat, you die and everything else in between is a gift but I will be the next to say it’s not only a gift but also a blessing. I believe that, as blessings, chance happenings and encounters in our lives don’t usually occur without cause or reason.

Encounter 1: In 2003, while in Hermiston visiting our oldest son and his family, my husband, Leo and I walked into a convenience store to purchase a drink. Standing in line stood a man I hadn’t seen in many years. I walked closer, my heart beating with excitement and with pause in my voice said “David?” The man turned, a look of confusion on his face and said “Yes.” With a smile bursting from my face, I exclaimed, it’s me “Susie.” His confusion deepened; I laughed out loud and said “Your cousin.” Realization dawned on his face, the light bulb clicked on and we connected. We talked, exchanged contact information and went our separate ways. During the months to follow, we emailed back and forth until one fateful day the borrowed computer I’d been using sizzled its way into the place where only dead computers go. Because we’d just moved back to our home town, Leo had just started his business and I’d just started my job at a doctor’s office at half the pay of my previous job, the prospect of buying a new computer was not an option. Needless to say, my communication with my cousin dwindled to nothingness.

Encounter 2: (This encounter happened thanks to my sister Anita.) My sister Anita and my brother Eric were the pioneers of my siblings to venture into the social networking system of Facebook. Finally taking the plunge, I signed up and then said “Now what do I do?” I had no idea how to navigate the sight let alone figure out how to find people to become my friends. So I did what any self-respecting follower would do, I went trolling for friends on their sites and when I recognized someone I knew, I luckily found the tab “Add as Friend.” While doing this, I found one particular person on my sister’s site that piqued my curiosity, Connie K. I immediately wrote her to find out if she was indeed who I thought she was and she replied that she was the same Connie, my cousin, David’s daughter. Catching her at just the right time, still drugged up from her surgery the day before, she graciously accepted my invitation to be my friend.

Encounter 3: Skip forward to 2009, again in Hermiston visiting our son and his family, but this time at Wal-Mart. We were rushing to claim our place at the check-out counter when once again in front of us stood my cousin, David. This time I gave him no chance for confusion and went straight for the smile, the squeal and a big hug. This time we exchanged cell phone numbers as well as email addresses and have successfully managed to stay in touch, thanks to text messaging and Connie’s help in getting her Dad onto Facebook.

Encounter 4: (I only get to claim a partial part of this encounter.) In the fall of last year, my sister Karen and her husband Neal were in town visiting. We made plans to meet for breakfast one morning during their visit. Upon leaving their room, my sister came face to face with a woman that she thought she recognized but hadn’t seen for many years. The woman, in turn, came to the same realization. Tentatively, they spoke each other’s names. “Paula?” “Karen?” Both being correct in their assumptions is how my cousin, Paula, came to join us that morning for breakfast.

Shortly after that encounter, David’s mother exchanged her earthly life for one of peace. I attended the funeral and while there, I got reacquainted with my cousins, Debbi and Michael and met spouses, children and grandchildren. As I sat there, in between the laughter, tears, hugs and story-telling, I felt as though I could almost see the love and energy circulating around the room. Before I left, we all stressed the need to keep in touch ~ perhaps a family reunion.

Still buzzing with joy, I contemplated the idea of a family reunion on the drive home that day. What would it be like to have all the relatives from one side of my family together in one room for the day, I wondered? Knowing deep in my heart that after having chance encounters and occurrences, if you don’t figure out and act upon them, they are lost to you forever; I decided it would be worth the journey to find out.

The “First Annual Keltz Family Reunion” took place, this past weekend, in La Grande, Oregon. Family came from Oregon, Idaho and Washington to attend. Some family couldn’t attend this year, with promises to attend next year if we decided to have another. In all, we had forty seven family members together in one room. What was it like? Everything I’d imagined it would be and more. Children quickly found new friends in cousins they’d never met, adults reunited and bonded, the elders witnessed the gathering of each generation that had sprung from those they created and family members long past gone, were remembered through pictures and stories.

Like the Forrest Gump’s saying, “Life is like a box of chocolates…you never know what you’re gonna get”, the “Keltz” family members found that we are indeed individual and unique people with our own special gifts; music, photography, writing, organization, leadership, patience, kindness, creativity. But we also discovered that we were all more alike than we’d realized; elbows, toes, cheek bones, cackling laughter, bad joints, similar diseases, love of music, love of books, senses of humor, the need of family and the fact that we’re unable to stop tears from flowing when moments touch our hearts.

At the end of the evening, my nephew, Elam, asked if the day was everything I’d hoped it would be. I was tired at the time and didn’t quite know how to explain that yes, it was what I’d hoped for… but more. It was a day filled with joy, with reconciliation, with laughter, with song, with love, with memories and hope. This day was given to us as a blessing, a lesson, a treasured gift for each of us to store in our own special place in our hearts, to pull out when we need a dose of laughter, acceptance, understanding and love…until the “Second Annual Keltz Family Reunion.”

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

I want to thank you for everything you did for the reunion! I came with little to no expectations and left having a emotionally glorious time! However, you left out one of our odd quirks, the pinky toes!!! I cannot wait till next years reunion!!! Lovin ya!
"Nortney!!!"

Connie said...

Beautiful.....

Karen Keltz said...

Look, Susie, you have COMMENTS! They love you, they really love you! :-) See, when you put the comment section in, you get comments. Aha! This was a lovely piece and you did justice to something that's so amazing and wonderful it's hard to write about. I can't believe you have the energy today to even move. Ha! I think that you made this event happens shows another Keltz trait which is stubborn determination to make happen what you know should happen. Thank God you pay attention to the signs when a lesson is up ahead. You're my angel girl. K

Laurel said...

I am not a family member, but Sue makes me feel like one! I have been enjoying her friendship and her writing skills for a while now...I am so lucky on both counts!