On Wednesday, I had the extreme pleasure of re-connecting with my Aunt Gerta and Cousin Sandy after 55 years. Yes, I said 55 years; that’s how long since we had last seen one another.
Several months ago Sandy found me through Ancestry.com. It was very fortuitous as I had been lamenting the fact that I didn’t feel like I had a family. I was really missing a connection to my Father’s side of the family. Sandy called me at the exact moment I needed and I was more than thrilled. When we were young girls, Sandy and I spent a couple of weeks together each summer at our Grandmother’s home in San Francisco. I always looked forward to these visits because Sandy was such a sweet girl and we got along so well. Those memories are some of the best I can remember.
Aunt Gerta is 87 years old and is a beautiful person, both physically and mentally. I felt such a strong connection to her and I remembered how much I had always admired her. She began dancing when she was 13 and continued dancing until a few years ago when a hip replacement finally stopped the dance. Well, it stopped the physical part of the dance, but she still choreographs for others. She’s a delight to be with and quite amazing.
Sandy, three weeks younger than I, is also a beauty and I felt the same sense of kinship and love I felt with her so long ago when we were girls playing together. She reads a lot and seems to have read some of the same books I have. There were other similarities and I felt so comfortable talking to her...like the sister I never had. I was an only child, so Sandy was, and is, very important to me.
I also got to meet John, Sandy’s husband. It’s good I brought James along because Aunt Gerta, Sandy, and I were totally engrossed in catching up. James and John hit it off too, and had much in common.
They looked me over and declared I had the Ogletree genes. After being with them again, seeing how physically and spiritually beautiful they are, I am truly grateful I have those genes!
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