Family Ties

A few days ago I had the amazing opportunity to meet a cousin I had only met once before when I was very very young. You see I have three cousins who all live in the US. My Uncle also lived in the US until he passed away last year. I met my Uncle when I was young also but not since, though I have always felt as though I knew him from the stories I was told by my Dad. Uncle Kenny was older than Dad by quite a bit and moved overseas before Dad started his family. I have always known I had family overseas and being as family orientated as I am have always wanted to know more about them, often asking questions and paying particular attention to everything I was ever told about them.

The beauty of the Internet and in particular sites such as Facebook is that they can allow you to connect with people you may otherwise never get to meet but definitely should. Over the last 12 months or so I have communicated via the net with all three of my US cousins, with a lot of communication between myself and one cousin in particular, Michelle. When I heard that Michelle was coming to Australia with the intention of simply seeing and getting to know some family I was instantly excited. After a few emails backwards and forwards it was settled that Michelle and her husband Gary would venture down to my Mum and Dads with my two Aunts (one of whom they were staying with during their trip) on Friday and stay the night at my parents home in Somers.

On Friday I not only got the pleasure of seeing my Aunts who I see far too sporadically but I also met Michelle in person. Not to sound too 'airy fairy' but I felt an almost immediate connection. I could have sat and talked with her for hours, she was just one of those people who makes you feel instantly comfortable. I cannot describe the feeling other than instant comfort and acceptance. Maybe it is because we are family and it is ingrained into us to have a connection or maybe she is just a very special person who makes everyone feel at ease when they meet her, I don't know.  My only regret is that I will not get to see her more often. We may live on opposite sides of the world but I cannot wait to see her again, to chat, to share stories and ideas (She too is looking at starting a new blog and doing so 'properly') and to get to know each others families.

When I got back from Mum and Dads on Friday I couldn't stop telling Craig how wonderful the day had been and when he later found me researching the cost of flights to Colorado I think he realised that I was serious. Not this year (Wedding, Bali etc etc) and probably not next (will probably still be paying for the wedding lol) but soon, I want to travel to America, I want to spend time getting to know my extended family. Of course we will have to see as much of the US as we can but now more than ever I am determined to get there. And when we do I will hopefully get to meet my entire extended family and build connections that will last the rest of my life