Dan and I spent nearly four days in the car, driving to Connecticut to see my mother and other sons. I was fretting by the time we reached the Tappan Zee bridge, as there'd been a horrific accident there in the recent past. I'm weird like that - wondering if there was a fault with the bridge as opposed to the driver in question, but no, four days on the road had whittled away my ability to cope with traffic. I was hoping that Andy had made arrangements to be at my mother's, but that was not to be. I got to at least see my two other sons and spend time with my mother.
The weather turned miserable after our first day, so we didn't do much in the way of touristy things. We watched DVDs at home and did a little shopping. We shared dinner on my birthday. Most of the time, we sat and talked and reminisced over a shared breakfast. My mother got out a scrapbook that she made during the time of my father's illness and I read through letters and cards, and pored over mementos of my father's life. There were photos of my grandparents' house at the time of my dad's last visit "home." My mom and dad's high school yearbooks - It was all very poignant. Thirty years has not dulled the pain of the loss of my dad. He wasn't perfect, but he was perfect enough for me.
Going home to visit parents does several things for me: puts me in touch with my roots, helps me to reconnect with family, and also reminds me why we all have separate lives based on our choices of what suits us best. After a few days in the gloomy weather, I realized why I moved to the south in the first place: seasonal depression. I wonder how my kids cope with it? I remember, when they were growing up, I could expect all hell to break loose around October, and not end until May.
After five days, it was time to say goodbye until the next reunion. Next time, I think I'm going to suggest Las Vegas!
Click on photos to enlarge.
Labels: Connecticut, reunions |
posted by Melanie O. at 
