Happiness is....

"Happiness is having a large, loving, caring, close-knit family in another city." George Burns.

I came across this quote and realized how much it really resembles my family. We have always considered ourselves to be close-knit a very close family who would do anything for each other, yet we never really took the time to get to know each other. This came so apparent after both our parents past on. You see we were a close-knit family so long as we had atleast one of our parents to keep reminding us that we were. Now that just seems ridiculous, but true.

Since my mother passed away three years ago, it became very apparent that I had no relationship with my brothers. Now I was always pretty close to my sister, who passed away 5 years ago, and get this, when I was born she was so jealous of me since she wanted to be the only girl in the family....gosh thanks sis!

I thought I was close to my oldest brother Ken who I spent many a summers with when I was young, but I soon found out that he didn't even know a thing about me WHAT! Then there was the middle of the three boys Bill, who also had me at his home many times for weeks if not months and to who I just adored when I was younger and he was away in Vietnam....but boy as soon as our sister passed away, I couldn't do anything right. I couldn't put on a reception for family and friends...I couldn't take care of mom the right way, NOW JUST WAIT A MOMENT....I was the only one that took care of mom after dad passed away...don't tell me I can't take care of her. Then there was Jim the youngest of the three boys, he was the one that was going to help me take care of Mom, BUT only when there wasn't a major decision to be made...at those times he disapeared.

Now three years later I sit here day in and day out and if I ever talk to any of them I am usually the one to do the calling. OH excuse me....my brothers do call when they start to feel quilty because I haven't called them in a while...WHAT???

I have so many cousins and some I have never ever met, but hey we are such a close-knit family. Do you know that if something happened to one of them I wouldn't know about it until someone slips up three months later and asks me if I remember when so and so was sick???? Now come on how would I know that that person was sick when nobody ever calls me?

I have the goofiest Aunt, I love her to death but now that Mom is gone she doesn't have the time of day for me. She is always the one that everyone checks in with when something happens in the family, but I guess I fell off her list.

Oh well, I am close to my family and yes we all live distances apart, we might not know one another, but that doesn't matter we are still a close-knit family.