An Interesting Anniversary  -  Feb 28th, 2010 7:04pm

I don't really write a lot on this site about my family... well unless they are involved in one my oddball activities (as my friends have come to call them).  They are however very important to me, and I had a very cool experience at my Aunt and Uncle's 50th wedding anniversary a few weekends ago.

My Aunt Jeannie is my mother's sister.  Her and her husband (my uncle Charles) have been a part of my life as long as I can remember.  My brother grew up with their kids and some of my first childhood memories are of playing in their backyard - a wondrous place containing a cornucopia of unintentionally sharp/rusty/dangerous aka-fun things for a kid to play with.

They are both awesome people who have always treated me well and who I care greatly about.  To try and boil them down any less would leave them diluted and not do them justice.  To see them celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary - something that is rarer than it should be - was itself pretty amazing.  My uncle is an incredibly stoic guy who could remove a fish hook from his hand without wincing but even he teared up during a toast.

What was really special and unsuspected for me though was a video they had put together of their early years together.  It was all silent 8mm film full of Christmas mornings, birthdays and parades.  It was also full of my grandfather.

For as long as I can remember people have been telling me I am just like my grandfather in this way or that.  A huge compliment in my book as they all seem to have loved him as a person as much as a family member.  He was an incredibly kind hearted man with a sharp sense of humor and a love for irony, invention, and life.  He was an artisan and a man much smarter than his station in life let him be recognized for... or at least so I'm told.  My grandfather died right before I was born.

My grandmother passed away before she could teach me anything about the man and while I've heard many stories I've really only seen a photo or two of him.  So watching this video of a man I've been compared to for so long and admire for the way people speak of him was kind of a surreal experience.  Not to mention all the shots of my mother at my age and the first video I've ever seen of my brother when he was a child.  I was absolutely hypnotized by it all.

So congrats Aunt Jeannie and Uncle Charles!  Thank you for showing us all the way and for giving me a chance to see my family in a way I've only ever heard described.  I'm proud to have been there with you along the way.