Family Connections

I'm excited to see my sister-in-law and my niece this week. It's been several years, though we've seen each other electronically.  I'm sad that my brother can't make the trip, but this will be great.

My niece will be attending college in Chicago in the fall, which means she'll live within driving distance.  My own daughter will also be living in Chicago. While we haven't ever lived physically near them, I marvel at the connection between my girls and my niece and nephew. When I was growing up, I saw all my cousins weekly. We all lived near each other, our parents vacationed together at the family cottage, we were each other's closest friends for most of our childhood. Things are really different for my girls. We've never lived near immediate family, and though they have several sets of cousins, once a year at Christmas is really the only time they see each other.

And yet, my girls feel so close to the two cousins who live the farthest away. I think that's cool. They share a connection that they discovered at a later age, and while they don't write or call or talk to each other at all, when they're all together, it's as if they've never been apart. I don't know what the connection is, but whatever it is, it works. And it's a joy to hear them all giggling together. I'm really looking forward to that sound again this week. And I know my brother and sister-in-law feel better knowing that my daughter will be in Chicago to look out for their daughter.