It was a good day

I have three half sisters, all from my father’s side of the family. They are all older than I am, they have all been married to the same husbands for 30+ years, they have grown children (10 between them) and all but one have multiple grandchildren. Lisa is the oldest, she was the Solitarian of her high school graduating class, her husband Ed, whom she has been married to for 40 years this year, was the valedictorian of the same class. They have four children and six grandchildren, have lived in the same town and home for most of their lives, and hardly ever travel outside the state of Ohio. Lynn, the middle sister has also been married to the same man for over 30 years, also lives in Ohio but is about an hour drive from her sister. she has 4 grown boys (well men) and they all live within shouting distance of each other. The youngest Tanya, has lived in the Pensacola area for as long as I can remember. She and Roger have bene married for 30+ years as well, and have two sons, one of which is about to be married.

My sisters are the result of my father’s first marriage, and they have never treated me as if I were not part of the family. Lisa and Lynn actually lived with us for a good part of my childhood in Ohio. we were close, and as all siblings, since I was the youngest, I was the brunt of their jokes and was teased most of my childhood, but that’s how it was back then, the 70’s was a different time, practically a different era, and my love for them never diminished. I looked up to them, idolized them and never resented how they treated me.

When my father moved us to Florida in the Summer of 1979, we grew apart, the distance seemed too far to stay close, and I missed them. After my parents divorced, my father moved back to Ohio to be close to his elderly mother and life went on, I lost touch with the family in OH and was more concerned with trying to figure out what I wanted to do. When I became an adult, I managed to make a couple of trips to Ohio to not only see my dad, but to reconnect with my sisters. Our father died in 1996, I went home for the funeral, and spent some good quality time with Lynn and Lisa, as well as the nephews and nieces I have never known. That was the last time I saw Lisa, nearly 23 years ago. I recently found out that Lynn was coming to Florida each year to celebrate Tanya’s birthday (July 4) Her and her mother would drive down and would spend the week with them. A couple of years ago my m,other moved to the panhandle of Florida near Tallahassee and I had reconnected with Lynn on Facebook, so we decided that we could meet at my Mothers the week she was here and bring Tanya along to visit for a few hours. It was an excellent idea and for the last two years we have been meeting up annually at my mothers’ place and spending a few hours together telling stories and catching up.

This year was different… Without me knowing, Lisa came with Lynn this year. So there we were, four siblings together in the same spot for the first time in over 40 years. I cried, I laughed, and it was a really good day. Thanks sis, words cannot describe how wonderful that was and how appreciative I am to both you and Lisa for getting us all together again. I hope it wont be the last time, and I look forward to the next time. I love you all, and as I said… It was a really good day

Scott