Yesterday was a special day.

My oldest son had a landmark day. He moved into his own place. Now he sort of moved out of the house a few months ago but the place he was staying was not a permanent place--he didn't get a key to the door, didn't get to call the address his own, and came back on the weekends as he didn't have access to the kitchen. Yesterday he moved into a home where he has a key, has an address of his own, and a place he can call his own. He also has a good job. He has a girl he is falling for (and who enjoys his company too).

Now this is his new room :

Sure it isn't the most impressive place. However, it is a perfectly fine starting place and as his father I am so proud to see him standing on his own as a man.

However, there was more to yesterday than just helping my son move into his own place. He asked me to introduce him to the more distant family members that live near him. He wanted to connect with relatives he hasn't seen in a decade. In some cultures it seems that family is close but in my case my father moved away from his family when I was only 3 years old and as such I was never close to my relatives. Add in a divorce and that makes things more distant still. But family is still family and when my son wanted to meet them how could I say no to introducing him to his Great Uncle?

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A Family Gathering

I don't think we could have had better timing. When I contacted my cousin they were delighted to hear from us. By coincidence there was a birthday party going on for my other cousins wife. They knew it was going to be a full house but invited us to join. Three generations of family all in one place on the day that my son moved. By even more coincidence my son moved 67km away from me but only about 300m away from a cousin who is only 5 months younger than him...in a city of a million people.

You may not believe in God, but I believe God had a hand in this move.

At the gathering I saw my uncle there...now 80+ years old and my aunt who's been by his side for over 60 years. I saw two of my cousins who are now in their late 50s and their adult children as well. Looking at them it made me smile to think how well they were all doing. The most senior being an intelligent businessman and strong Christian. His children being very businesslike and financially savvy. Their children again having a strong financial sense but branching into other fields.

It was great catching up with them and hearing how other members of the family were doing. It did get me to thinking about how family carries across the generations.

Three Brothers, Three Paths

Now my Grandfather was a hardworking businessman. He had three sons who all helped him with the business.

The oldest (and one I visited yesterday) studied hard at University and became a businessman himself. His division of the family have all developed strong business sense.

The middle child worked hard and became a tradesman. His children all followed with more hands on traits and trades. Successful but with a very different focus in life.

The youngest son was my Dad. He had a keen business sense and was good with his hands and trades but he decided to leave the city and become a cowboy. He left the city, left his family, left a prosperous business in order to follow his own path and his own dream. He brought my mom, a loving woman who dreams big with him. Safe to say that our side of the family is very different than the other branches.

The Same and Different

While visiting with family and its members both young and old it got me to thinking about what I got from my Dad and what my sons got from myself and my wife.

Almost all of my other relatives have stayed in roughly the same area. As for myself? I'm a bit like my father. I've travelled all over my province and worked in many different diverse places both in Canada and Abroad. My relatives are looking at retirement close to home while I'm looking at retirement in a variety of places all over the world. I guess I got a bit of wanderlust from my father. The desire to go places and see different things.

What else did I get from both parents? The ability to look at different ways of achieving my goals. Thinking outside the box. My mother is a dreamer and is always dreaming about possibilities. My father was both a dreamer and possibilty seeker. He was always looking at ways to work the system and make things happen--even if it was by unconventional means. I'm happy to say that I got the desire to dream big and follow my own path from both my mother and father.

In a way I'm sure that the rest of my family considers me odd because of it. Then again, both of my uncles enjoy seeing me because I remind them ... just a little ... of my father, their brother, who passed away almost 20 years ago. It is funny when they say that because I know I'll never live up to my father as I'd just be a pale shadow of him at best. Still I'm proud to carry his legacy.

Passed down to my children

I'm lucky to be old enough to see what the next generation is likely to look become. I have two sons: Both have a keen financial sense which seems to run in the family. Both are hardworking which also seems to run in the family. My oldest is great with his hands and a capable tradesman. He'd make his grandfather and middle uncle proud with that. My youngest is outgoing, smart, and has a quick wit. Again, he would make his grandfather and his oldest uncle proud. I daresay that both of them will make more capable adults than I am and I'm not too sure how to feel about that. Proud that they are capable? Sad that I'll be outshone by my sons?

I guess in the end it doesn't matter much as I'm not really in a competition with my children 😄

The One Family Trait

While there are many different traits that seem to have gone down different branches of the family tree there is one trait that I'm more proud of than any other.

Love

Like any family there are quarrels and disagreements. However, one thing I can see in every generation of the family tree is Love.

There is no doubt that my Grandfather loved all his children.

There is no doubt that his sons loved each other, and their families.

There is no doubt that every generation I've seen has respect and love for all the other members. No backstabbing. No infighting. No bickering and quarreling. Hmm...well, I did hear stories about my uncles fighting during their teen years...but it seems to just have been more playful than bitter 😉

Perhaps that's because we only see each other infrequently but I tend to think its the Christian values passed down from generation to generation that have made a difference. I do not know my children will follow a Christian path and have the love, trust, generous nature and respect that I've seen in the older generations....but I certainly hope they do.

Thanks for reading,

As always feel free to leave comments.