Throwback Thursday - The Notebooks

There are second cousins but I do not know them. I met them at wakes but that is all. They did not seem to want to keep in touch. It was an attitude that we were the poor cousins. They also lived in better places. Their parents were good to me. They treated me with extra consideration. But then I was what they called the heir apparent. At the time [ed: 1920s] there were not many people who lived to 65 years. Fathers died young and the eldest child had to give up his dreams and get a job to support the family.

When my aunt died they [ed: her children] decided that they would want to buried close to their mother so they bought graves to be side by side. I don't know if their children did the same.

My aunt brought her family up properly they [ed: her children] never sassed her. In fact, I witnessed an incdient where my cousin Joe was pestering her for some reason and she said "Do I need to get the rolling pin?" this was a broom stick that was sanded down to its wood and from use in rolling over pasta dough had a gold look. He persisted. She reached behind her, took that rolling pin and tapped him. Joe quickly knelt down on one knee, took her hand and kissed it.

It opened my eyes. A symbolic acknowledgement. Kissing the hand that feeds you.

For some reason, I jumped ahead.