A Family Meme
Wed., June 20, 10:21 AM
This meme — just slightly different from some I've seen — appeared on the page of my buddy Bev. Maybe my answers are a little eccentric.
- Who's the oldest living member of your family?
Y'know, I almost said I am. We oldest kids get so self-centered, right? I'm just the oldest of this generation — on my mother's side.
My mother's youngest sister turned eighty-two last month, and Husband will turn eighty next year. - Who's the newest?
The newest, right? Not necessarily the youngest. Anyone could have had a new baby, or adopted another, and not announced it to all of us, and I would have no idea. From my point of view, the newest is my lovely daughter-in-law. She and Son recently celebrated their six-month anniversary, and maybe we will have official photos before the year is done. - If you could spend a two-week vacation with one family member, who would it be?
I have vacationed at one time or another with each of my children. They are all good companions, open to new experiences and appreciative of what they see. And they all take good care of the old woman, who will never get all the travel she hoped for. - The old saying goes, “you can pick your friends, but you cannot pick your family.” If you could choose one of your friends, who would you “elect” to become a member of your family?
There's a very fine line there. I tend to adopt friends into my family anyhow, and I would say I'm closer to friends than to many members of my family. My friend Gloria always refers to herself as an adopted sister. I also have one cousin who is actually the stepdaughter of one of my first cousins. Technically, she's not related, but she's one of my favorite people in the world. - Who in your family can you just NOT stand?
No names please! There are people I would rather not see — and I don't see them very often. I do manage to be civil, and even charming, when we happen to attend the same function. - Do you have a member of the family who is currently suffering an illness?
We are a family of chronic illnesses. I've mentioned Hereditary Hemorrhagic Telangiectasia, which affects about 30 percent of my generation and two of my three kids. Although members of our family seem to have a milder variety, the condition is unusual enough to have been the subject of an episode of “House.”
There are also family members who have diabetes, Crohn's disease, osteoporosis, arthritis (one rheumatoid, others osteoarthritis), and/or some form of senior dementia. - Do you have a family member that you've lost contact with? Who are they, and why do you not currently have contact?
Is the sky blue? Some people, like my brother's family as well as several cousins, live on the other coast. Between the distance itself and the fact that their lives are very different from mine, our contact is limited to the occasional e-mail or greeting card.
One aunt told us, quite abruptly, “ if you marry out [i.e., a non-Jewish person], don't invite me because I'm not coming.” I don't mind leaving her off the lists, but I have thus lost contact with all of her children and grandchildren; I consider that sad. (Don't suggest I Google them; the name is so generic I could get ten thousand hits on one person alone.) - Do you have any famous family members?
Define famous. My father's oldest brother was a high school football star and a hero of World War I. Who remembers that? On the other hand, that uncle's grandson is a best-selling novelist and children's advocate. I usually don't use my maiden name because I wouldn't want him to think I was horning in on his popularity.
