Cousins

Isn't it interesting that as we get older, as we move beyond those busy years filled with children and work and activities, we become more interested in our roots and in reconnecting with our extended family.

On Saturday we traveled to Tahuya on Hood Canal for a visit with two of my cousins, Kathy and Mike.

The Olympic Mountains were gleaming in the welcome sunshine, the first clear day in a while.

This is Kathy's cabin in Tahuya. This is the scene of many happy family gatherings for her, but now, as a widow and with her children and grandchildren in that "busy" stage, she seldom comes here. Cousins can become a good way to share this place with so many memories for her. We didn't play in the creek that runs through her property. Instead she met with a contractor to see about shoring up the eroding bank. Change happens.

We came for several purposes: to visit, to enjoy a fun day trip, and to share and exchange family stories, photos and genealogical records.

We took a walk around the community, to the beach access for those with beach rights.

We dumped oyster shells off the dock after those who enjoy them had some for lunch. The shells usually contain the starts of tiny new oysters and the old shells become the nursery for a new generation. This is the area where the Tahuya River empties into Hood Canal. An extension of Puget Sound, this is tidal, salt water where shellfish and crabs can be harvested. Kathy and Mike had done the gathering during the previous day's low tide. Kathy and Mike are the children of two of my father's sisters.

We are hoping to organize a reunion of all the cousins from the Norquist family. We have all grown up with separate lives, and yet we have a common heritage, a tie that binds.