No excuses. In the past I have pled bronchitis. And that old devil, Writer’s Block. Both sincerely good reasons to abandon one’s brain along with the keyboard. But this long time-out from posting on Snowbirdredux is wholly related to a mega-family gathering over the end of June at a farm in North Dakota.
And not just because of the plethora of events themselves, which took place over one weekend. There was the Prologue – filled with assorted visions, unending questions, endless lists, on-going and interlaced communication (and miscommunication), along with invasive acts of planning. Then there was the Multi-Event itself. And finally, the Epilogue which has required a slow meltdown of mingled satisfaction and overwhelmingness.
Whew.
It all began approximately one year ago when my cousin Debbie and I, realizing that it had been five years since the last gathering, determined to hold another family reunion. Shortly thereafter, it became known that cousin Kevin’s daughter Kaycee had become engaged and was determined to return to familial roots for the ceremony. “Perfect,” we thought. Combine the two. That will bring the far-scattered Johnson clan together.
But two good thoughts quickly became five and the Mega-Event was initiated. Turns out it was also Aunt Lil’s 90th birthday. And the pre-scheduled 124th anniversary celebration of the country church where the nuptials would take place. As well as a chance for cousin Debbie’s husband, Rick, to initiate a long overdue reunion with HIS clan, whose story would fill a best-seller, tear-jerker memoir which could be made into a major motion picture.
At one point I might have protested the unlikelihood of any sense of cohesion given the disparate celebrations which were playing out in the overall scheme. But Debbie, you see, is a clown. And I don’t mean a clown in the dictionary sense of being “a rustic, boorish, clumsy, rude buffoon.” But rather, a real entertainer who, as “La Ditzy,” has performed in such far-flung locales as India and Indonesia and from Canada to California. And while she has never appeared in an actual circus under that guise, I’m assuming that all clowns possess a “big top” mentality which includes the reality of multiple acts going on at the same time. Otherwise, why do we say, when there are numerous activities at once, that it is a Circus? And yes, Debbie IS known in our family for her unbounded energy.
So midst pre-show cooking and ornamentation, wedding and birthday revelry, multi-meals, dancing, fireworks, bonfires, hayrides, Norwegian hot tubs, and all manners of chicanery – it’s been an over-the-top time of celebration
See for yourself.
Rick who, not only has a farm, but raises trees, thought I was crazy when I suggested we needed to go down to the river and haul back large, dead downfall for the wedding venue.
Well. You get the picture! Uff Da!
And blessings on my family.
snowbirdredux 