Family Reunion, March 2011

I arrived at the small Alabama town where my cousins and other family members gather every year for our reunion. This one was even more fun than previous years.

By Friday morning, the Jacksonville contingent, Pam, Aunt Ileen, Kenny and his wife, Bobbie, had arrived. We went over to the property that our family has owned since it was deeded from the government back in the 1800s. Kenny and I went to work unpacking our guns and shooting "stuff". Soon we were filling the air with gunshots and laughter as we aimed at our targets, both paper bulls-eye targets and stacked up plastic bottles. I took out my Sig Sauer 1911 .45 and from 12 or more feet away, I hit the crosshairs of the target. I looked toward Kenny for a congratulations. . . instead I got, "A blind hog in the woods can find an acorn now and then." That's Kenny!

Later I emptied the magazine all within the middle circle of the target. . . "Hmm, must be a few blind hogs walking around."

Saturday was the big day. Before the crowd arrived, it was just me, Kenny, and Bobbie. Kenny was walking along the road leading in to the property, cutting back brush with his huge machete. Bobbie and I went for a walk through the property. Kenny soon joined us. "Oh, wait! Look over there," she said. She had found a Kodak moment!!! There was an old log surrounded by small trees just starting to bloom.



I snapped this picture of them and then it was my turn!



Before long the Pensacola and Andalusia crowd had arrived. There were now 16 of us.

This picture is all of the cousins that were present, lined up from left to right with the youngest to the oldest. The space in the middle is in memory of Paul, who died in 1961.



And here is everyone else.



The above two pictures are why I drive 2200 miles (round trip) every year to attend this reunion. We are an eclectic bunch, with varying perspectives, scattered here and there across the country but we are family and family is important.

Not pictured is Aunt Hazel. She is in failing health and bedridden. Bruce, Debbie, and Richard rented a van so that she could come even though she isn't able to mix and mingle with the rest of us. God bless her.

Our meal that day was my camp dutch oven pot roast.






Debbie had never shot a gun in her life and doesn't know the difference between a revolver or pistol. I decided to fix that. So I put the gun in her hand, showed her how to hold it and how to aim. "Don't put your finger on the trigger until you are ready to fire and keep the gun pointed 'that way'," I told her. Like I said, we are an eclectic bunch. . . Debbie fired the gun, heaven only knows where that bullet went, but not on the target. She turned to me, holding the gun like it was a dead rat. "Here," she said as she handed it back to me! She then picked up her rod and reel and went fishing in the lake.

I tried my hand at fishing. The last time I had a fishing line in the water, a few of those present were not even born. My line tangled miserably. Should have known better, but I asked Kenny what happened. "Operator error." was his reply.

After a fun day that went by much too fast, we packed up and another reunion was over. Some of us headed over to Rita's in laws' vacation home on a beautiful lake. I'll try to get pictures from there uploaded soon.