The Corn Was As High As An Elephant's Eye!

How would you describe a perfect summer day?  Wake up without an alarm clock?  Check.  Chores you can put off until later in the week?  Check.   High about 80 degrees with low humidity? Check.  Puffy white clouds lined up in shapes?  Check.  Minnesota weather can be great once in awhile.  Family gathering in Harris, Minnesota?  Check.  Cousins, cousins, cousins, I got a million of them. Good looking, successful cousins, too!  What is really good is that I am not the only one who can't remember their names.  As I have aged, I am less self-conscious about my lack of memory and that is good because I'm not the only one.  I think about my Grandmother and my Grandfather.  I loved them so much. We all miss them. Descendants of Leona and Edward, here we are, all gathered together for one of their son's 80th birthday party.  I learned much today.  For one thing, when my uncle was 18 I came into the world.  I guess I thought he was older. I teased him about the Navy flag and the Marine flag in his patio area.  Turns out he was is the Army and stationed in  Stuttgart, Germany in the 1950's -another thing I didn't know.  When I arrive my aunt tells me she has tabbouleh! She seems proud of tabbouleh to complement the sloppy joes and pulled pork sandwiches.  I am pleased to the core to know she remembers I don't eat meat. She is so cool.  I gobble up the tabbouleh and am happy to do so.  I watch the potato sack races and laugh as the older folks try hard to win and jump too far and fall to the ground.  The egg toss goes on and on.  A 4 year old princess gets yolk on her toes and she's upset but she lives. We sit in the shade of a willow tree and talk about our heart stents and hip replacements.  And butter - is it good or is it bad? We pose for a photo next to the tall corn.  A shirtless toddler runs away from the group. He's about 13 months old.  I don't know his name.  We all call him back. He comes back but leaves again - it seems he likes a crowd of people beckonging him to come back.   Relationships - it is what life is all about.  In the photo I am in the left third wearing a red shirt in the second row of people celebrating my Uncle George's 80th birthday party.