I'm feeling homesick again.
It's not so much Kansas as it is for my family. It's funny how today seems like a holiday. Super Bowl Sunday is a day for gatherings. I don't care about this game. I'm not invested one bit in either team playing. I have a vague idea about a couple of coaching brothers on opposing teams and I imagine there will be plenty of talk about their parents and pride and yada, yada, yada. I'd like to see the commercials and the half-time performance. I can do without the temptations of chips and dips. I'd totally cave.
I miss stepping over my brother's legs as he sits on the couch with one of the kids nestled into his side, watching the game, a bottle of beer half-finished on the coffee table. I miss leaning against the kitchen counter and listening while my sister-in-law tells me what's going on at her job. I miss a crockpot on the table with cocktail sausages in a bubbling, boiling goo of BBQ sauce and someone asking if we're supposed to stab these with toothpicks...or what?
I miss sheetcake with fingerprints of icing scooped out of the side.
I miss a trashcan standing by the back steps piled high with paper plates.
Last night I watched the History Channel's "Hatfields & McCoys". Excellent movie. I don't think I learned a lot I didn't already know about that bunch of warring hillbillies. I was moved by the portrayal of family loyalty and (at times) affection. I'm trying to think of anything our family held in common with those families besides loyalty and affection.
Hmmm...Don't recall any punchin', shootin', or spittin'. Well the kids spit up plenty.
The dogs. We sure loved our dogs.
And we understood our history. We knew where we came from and we embraced our common bond. Below is a picture of my grandmother's grandparents. I keep this photo in my dining room. They were of the same generation as Devil Anse and Randolph.
Happy Sunday, Everyone. I hope yours is super.
Fam: I miss you and love you. Have a bite of Rotel for me today. I'll be out taking pics in this city while everyone is inside. :))))))) M
