Sentimental Thoughts on Family

Thoughts on the Family

Funny what a death can trigger in the mind. Do we keep track of our kin like we should? Do we talk often enough, do we at least exchange data every couple months?

It is rather weird that I had thought on this topic a few weeks ago but did not go farther now I am wondering if others that do genealogy find that we some times forget the living people. I try to keep in touch with kin often in some form or another.
I have long distant flat rate so that I can keep up with close and distant kin since we are scattered all across the USA.

It is rather quiet for us here in San Diego because other than a couple cousins, one we hardly ever hear from and our own children no one is here. I have close kin in Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico, Michigan, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Kansas, Iowa, Oklahoma & Texas. Some more distant kin and close friends in Ohio, Illinois, Pennsylvania, New York, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina, Alabama, Texas and Georgia.

If I get into second cousins we probably have kin in every state. Some of this comes from being a military family and we traveled a lot. As did my ancestors before, almost all generations served in Wars of some nature. Our children never had a permanent home until we landed in San Diego the second time.

We lived in San Jose/Santa Clara area then Santa Rosa, Petaluma, again, then Lemoore Naval Air Station, and the town of Lemoore also, then we were in Coronado, Ca then Hawaii, then back to San Diego for all time I am slowly resigning to.

In this area we have lived in LEMON GROVE, CHULA VISTA, and SAN DIEGO and CORONADO, at various times.
My favorites were Lemon Grove, Chula Vista, Coronado and then San Diego City. The city is to big, it looses people.

I grew up in a town of 140 people and that was not counting the cows or pigs. Oh, we should not forget the chickens.
Petaluma was the Chicken Capitol of the World when I was a youngster and teen. I lived on a dairy ranch, a chicken &
dairy ranch and then our home. We lived in Marin County and then Sonoma County after we came from Wyoming.

Mom still lives in Sonoma County and she will be 90 on 29 June of this year. If you read this I am hoping you will think of her and send a card wishing her a Happy 90th Birthday. I will post the address next weekend.

Tonight I learned my brother is in the hospital with heart trouble, I am sure hoping it is not bad. They will be doing more tests on Monday. Knowing him as I do if he decided to go to the hospital it is seriously serious. At least he is in the right place if he is to have more trouble.

Mom was doing fine, His wife sounded okay over the phone when she called. He has suffered before.

So do we communicate with her close and distant relatives and friends as we should or could? I can say I love Facebook
for the ability to communicate with family in other regions and post pictures of what is happening.

I do not think some things brought up should be spoken on Facebook but I feel once they are bitten by being to forward they will learn not to do that.

Email helps for those who have email and can manipulate a computer. But bottom line is the phone line is best. One can
tell if the stress is great or little, if they are well or fatigued. Our voices can definitely give us away.

We can also share in their happy moments and times of joy. We do not have to wait for a letter a week down the road.
I like letters yes, but it sure is fun to pick up the phone and hear a daughter say. "MOM, I got a pay raise."
The excitement in the voice makes it worth the phone.