Minnesota Trip 2011 - Day Three

"You can't go home again." In many ways that old saw remains a truism. The house in which I was born and raised is now abandoned. The farm on which it stands still belongs to my brother, sisters and me, but no one is living there. All of us have moved on to other lives and homes.

But visiting the old homestead is a wonderful part of the annual trip. Today we made that pilgrimage and found the place to have the same emotional grip as it always has -- memories of childhood, happy times and ones not so, and a feeling that this little piece of land is a place of belonging.

We also went from there to visit my aunt who will turn 99 in September. She is my father's only sibling and is still plucky and independent. We had a good chat, viewed the pictures of grandchildren and great-grandchildren, and went for a short ride to see the Veterans Monument erected by my grand nephew as his Eagle Scout project.

The day was capped with dinner with my brother, his wife, and my nephew, niece and their spouses and children. For a short time, we could celebrate this branch of my extended family. It wasn't celebrated around the old home's dining table as we used to, but it was a sense of being "home" once more.

Tomorrow we head for the family fishing lake for more reunions. And I'll keep you posted...