THE REUNION

.
 My mind moves in all directions
 I am at peace, just affected
 By an encounter with many first cousins
  
 Some I have not seen in years
 There is so much known and unknown
 Trying to put it together in one day
  
 It began, went on and finally ended
 Then the heavy heart with the goodbyes
  
 My maternal grandparents had seven children
 They have all gone on to their rewards
 When we count the cousins we reach twenty-six
 Those who showed counted to ten
 The deceased among us totaled four
 Twelve couldn’t make it for one reason or another
 Some brought along their spouses
  
 Those there had stories and memories
 So much, almost too much to share
 From heartbreak events to those celebrated
 The yarns, jokes and tales went on
  
 And the food – how much can you eat?
 Enough for a week and we had only a day
  
 So emotional when it came to an end
 There was laughing and sadness, but no crying
 We vowed to do it all again
 And share all the records we gathered
  
 We’ll see how it goes – no one knows
 But we’re glad we had this one day
  
 Stanski
 October 4, 2019 ^