My Cousin's Getting Married!

My cousin is getting married this upcoming weekend. My anniversary is on the 13th, and my cousin is getting married on the 12th. I am attending the wedding on the 11th. Does that make sense? Doesn't sound like it but it's true! Let me explain. 

 My cousin and her older sister (who I have never met), live on the other side of the world. Her father, who was my mother's first cousin, was born and raised in New Jersey. Her mother was born and raised in England. My cousin and her sister were born in Australia where her parents decided to put down roots. Hence, she is getting married on Saturday the 12th September and I will watch her, by live stream, get married late in the evening on the 11th. Kind of weird, but also kind of cool.

 But let me tell you more about my amazing cousin. (She is an incrediblehuman being!) I'd say she's my favorite cousin, but I have a lot of favorites.  (I don't have that many relatives, but the ones I DO have are pretty darned awesome!). I'd say she's my favorite cousin who lives on the other side of the world, but both her sister and her father live there as well, so that would not be fair. So let me just say that she is my favorite cousin under eighty on the other side of the world who I have had the pleasure to have net. (How's that for specific?)

 Although she and her family live on the other side of the globe from me, they have been to the United States several times. But it was always the West coast; never the East. Which makes sense, after all that is where her grandfather, (my maternal grandmother's brother), lived. So trips to California were made. Meanwhile my family and I were living on the East Coast, so when she came with her family to visit as a child, we never met. However my parents did meet her and her older sister at least once, when they went out to visit her grandfather, my Great Uncle Harold. (It is worth noting that the last time I saw her grandfather was on the day of my wedding, 30 years ago.  And he also was a truly fascinating man.  I should do a post dedicated to him because his life...interesting doesn't even begin to cover it.)

 Luckily, when she was a younger woman (and this was before the pandemic), she decided to explore the Eastern seaboard of the United States. She came to the New York area and stayed with us in northern New Jersey for a day or two. Then she and I went down to my parents’ house at the Jersey shore where my son (who wasn't even in elementary school yet) was staying. It is worth noting that her grandfather built one of the first houses on the barrier island in that area. She was incredible with my son. She treated him as though he were his best friend. They did all sorts of exploring on the beach, building moats and "special spa baths."  He loved her immediately.  (How could he not?) As a mom, I can say that when someone treats my kid with love and respect I'm going to love and respect that person till the end of the time. So if I hadn't already felt that way about my cousin, now I did in spades. 

 We haven't been lucky enough to see her since then. However technology has kept us relatively close. She consoled me when my mom and then a year later my dad passed. And when her mom died I tried to be there for her too and support her. Was it enough? Probably not, but it was something.

 I know she's made a difference is many people's lives (mine included). She was an ambulance squad volunteer (that DEFINITELY made a difference!) and is fluent/certified in Auslan (the Australian equivalent of ASL).  She built her own little library for her neighborhood. She's may be younger than me, but I am in awe of her.

 And I'm so thrilled (as are my husband and son) that she is getting married.  Obviously, we've never met the groom, but if he's passed her inspection, well, then he's good enough for us and we welcome him into the American branch of the family.

 Have a wonderful wedding C & J.  We'll be watching and cheering you on!  (Probably in our jammies and from our bed because it's going to be pretty late for us!) Maybe some year we'll be able to get together and celebrate our respective anniversaries.  Because wonderful people like you (and I'd hope like us as well) should be celebrated!