Family Ties

Earlier this summer I received a phone call from a lovely lady who lives in the western end of our county. Bernice Tennant, age 89, was my Dad's first cousin. She and Dad had never met. I arranged a get together at our house in August when my sister Terry brought Mom and Dad here from Maryland and Bernice came with her niece, Gerry Varner. Gerry is a genealogist and brought pictures. Everyone shared memories of family members and events.

I heard Bernice tell Dad over and over, "Your Mother was so nice!" Dad's mother, Mae, died when he was just twelve years old. Bernice remembers carrying pots of food from her house on Westernport Hill to Dad's house a few blocks away. Dad's Dad and Bernice's Dad were brothers. What tickled me most when I talked to Bernice on the phone is that she said, "You sound just like Mae!" Now it's up to Terry, Gerry and I to pass those memories on.