When I was 22 I had a chance to travel to Scotland and Ireland for the second time with my grandma, aunt, cousin and mom. It was truly a trip of a lifetime where memories were created that I’ll never forget. Jokes were started that still live on and to think back on some of the shenanigans that Danielle, my cousin, and I pulled, I can only laugh.
We often switched up who we were sharing rooms with, as we hopped from town to town, and so this meant that sometimes the Young Girls (that would be Dani and me) shared with the The Old Gal (that would be Midgee-Poo). I’d like to place all the blame on Danielle, but I just don’t think that’d be fair….but the story goes that when we shared a room with Midge our suitcases exploded and clothes were EVERYWHERE. Midge had to get up in the middle of the night and out of fear of falling over some piece of clothing she army-crawled to the bathroom while Danielle and I snoozed on. To hear Midge tell the story is hilarious.
Of course Danielle and I could counter point that we had to wake up early in the morning to Midge splashing in the bathtub or doing her leg exercises. Anyhow, when I think back on these tremendous stories, full of the women in my family, it warms me up and makes me feel a little sappy. Not only did my cousin and I get to snuggle close to our grandmother on a fancy-pants vacation, but we also got to share with her through laughter parts of our everyday quirks ~ exploding suitcases, leg exercises and all.
When Danielle came to Maggie’s party wearing shoes that made me feel like I might topple over just by looking at them, it reminded me of our trip together all those years back. Dani loves high heels and wears them day in and day out. I, on the other hand, love flip flops and wear them day in and day out. It’s just how it has always been and probably how it’ll always be. Midge forever will fold her clothes and keep them contained and organized. Danielle and I will probably carry exploding suitcases until we’re elderly.
Now that we have a new generation among us, I can’t help but think about the quirks that I’ve got, or that my mother has, and that one day Maggie will notice and can’t believe she’s related to us. Hopefully she’ll get a chance, like I’ve had, to witness older generations and appreciate their quirkiness.
