We took the SL up to Maine for my cousins funeral, made nice progress Saturday morning.
I was concerned that because we would be going by the beaches, Seabrook, Salisbury, Hampton, that we would get hung up in traffic but it wasn't that bad.
We stopped in Augusta and got a lobster roll. it was OK.
It was good to see my relatives. I recognize that there won't be many more gatherings.
There were five in my Dad's family, all who married. Of his siblings there is only my Uncle Earl.
Of the spouses, there is my mom, Nyoka, who was married to my uncle Gene, who we lost last month, and my Aunt Doris.
My Aunt has been the Matriarch of the family. It was her son, Steven, we had the service for.
My paternal great grandfather, was Leonard, who had two sons, Manley and Lysander.
I got to see some of the cousins from Uncle Man's side.
Uncle Man had 11 children, only two remain. Lloyd who I've met at prior gatherings is in Ohio. The other is still in Maine.
As many know I have a genetic predisposition to high cholesterol and heart disease.
Lysander died of a heart attack in his late 50's and my dad at 40. Gene had a couple bypasses, cousins have heart a heart attack as early as their late 20's.
On Lysander's side everyone appears to be hetero-zygotes, The inference being they got the gene from only one parent not both.
Sadly on Manley's side of the family. there were cases of homo-zygotes. In one of the families, both parents were carriers.
None of the children from that union survived to adulthood, most dying in their teens. One of the children had a fatal heart attack at school in the third grade.
After talking with one of my cousins from the Man side I will be getting a bunch of family tree info.
My grandfather Leonard seems to be as far as it goes but his wife's maiden name was a Crockett.
The Crockett's go back many more generations.

I've watched Waldo county Maine change a great lot over the last 60 years. My Dad's family was from there.
Most of the siblings except for my Dad stayed there. Liberty, Unity, Montville are about 30 miles from Augusta.
As a wee lad, I can remember there were about 3 houses on RT 3 between Augusta and Liberty.
Now you never out of sight of a house for the whole trip. It's a different slower lifestyle but even that is changing.
Saturday there was a steady, almost endless stream of cars heading south.
Cell phones and the internet, cousins cast to the four winds. As a kid I can remember being able to walk to my grandmother's, my aunt's and other 3 uncle's houses.
It's hard to recognize the cousins of my generation now. Names come slowly, and forget the next few generations. I can't begin to tie kids to parents.
Save for my aunt's one and my sole surviving uncle I have no cell number or phones.
There's sort a sadness to it all.
The ties that bind me to my roots are withering. Soon I'll be that older generation trying to hold the clan together.

 

It's sad when time marches on.
My Dad was one of nine, seven of whom survived childhood. He lost siblings at young ages. Most by age 62, massive stroke, heart issues, cancer. My Dad passed at 85, he lived longer than any of his siblings, his youngest brother died after my dad at age 83. Of the spouses, only his wife is alive. We've lost two cousins, my sister being one and one other on Dad's side. On Mom's side, she was one of three. She was the oldest and the last of her siblings to pass. I've lost two cousins on that side, one is MIA and there is only one left.

I can locate my cousins easily, with the exception of the one who is MIA. I know the names of my cousin's kids, but no so much their grandkids. Overall, family health history of our generation isn't too bad.

 

I've been the older generation, since 2007 when my dad died. I only have two kids and one sister that matter to me. I'm supposed to be a grandmother in late October 2021. That's what I'm looking forward to. Small families in my background (only 2 kids) with many divorces.

 

Jerry those are some depressingly low ages for so many relatives to die. Someone has to change that and there's no reason it can not be you. Stay healthy my friend. We have some long distance runners and some sprinters in our tree, so you never know.

 

Congratulations!!!!!!

 

Dave some have been in their 80's a few survived into their 90's albeit with a few bypass interventions.
It's a tough fight to argue with genetics.
We were talking with my son yesterday and he asked about genetic testing.
While he hasn't found 'her' yet, He does want to have kids in the future.
Understanding if she has the gene would be an important consideration.
We went through Barb's family tree looking for heart disease prior to deciding on procreation rather than recreation.

 

It is kinda sad, but probably better for your own health not to dwell on it too much. I am pretty much the older generation. Things have really changed. I remember McLean, where my parents house was since the 60s, as being in the sticks. There were horse farms in the area. Not like that now! Tysons Corner is one of the biggest economic engines in the US. And of course, the house is gone, torn down as so many are here for bigger, newer ones. As for family history, I have a few relatives (including my parents) who lived into their 90s. But lifestyles are a lot different, so it is hard to say how long our generation will last. I take things one day at a time. And as Auntie used to say, "I don't buy green bananas."

 

My mother had a brother. Both of them are now gone.
My father had 7 brothers and sisters. Except for my Uncle Stanley who is 94 years old all of them and their spouses are gone. I have a number of cousins but since the aunts and uncles have died, what was once a close family has now beccome very distant. None of the cousins ever see each other except occasionally at funerals (and sometimes at the weddings or bar mitzvahs of great nieces or nephews, but not often).

What frightens me about all of this and the passage of time is that once my Uncle Stanley passes, I will be the oldest member of the family carrying the family name.

We all originated in Brooklyn, but none of us live there anymore. We are all spread out across the country. Brooklyn is very different but at the same time very much the same as where I grew up.

 

I have been the oldest member of my family since 2004 when my older sister passed away at age 60.

My parents were both only children. And, I had no brothers, only 4 sisters, so our family name is not being carried on.

 

I was an only child so all of my aunts and uncles have passed. I do have 10 cousins but they all live in other states. This is what a lot of folks our age are faced with. So sorry to hear your sad story but time is the enemy. We are in good health but we stay active in hopes of sticking around for as long as we can. I am 77 and work every day plus I cycle and play golf.