Cousins Reunited

The Cousins

On Saturday, April 1, Jerry, Diana, and I went to Cleburne, Texas to meet three of our cousins and their families for a mini family reunion. In February when we found out that one of our older cousins had passed away, Diana and I decided we would try to make contact with all of our living cousins on Daddy's side. Uncle Eustice's family was thrilled that she made the contact and wanted to meet up with us. Mary Jo, the  middle lady, is our oldest living cousin at 89 years young. She came all the way from Michigan with her daughter to meet up with us. Jane came from Branson, Missouri. Jimmie Charles and several of his children came from Burnet, Texas.
It was an enlightening experience to hear the many stories they told about growing up and stories about the different family members and our grandparents. Our favorite story was how they came to Texas from Michigan two years after their mother died. Uncle Eustice and Thelma had been married 21 years with five living children and one stillborn child, when Thelma died during childbirth with number seven. Around 20 years old Mary Jo, with Eustice and the three youngest children, drove the family to Texas in a Model A  for them to be with the rest of the family. The story is amazing of the trials and hardship of this journey.
Also they told stories about our Granny and Papa. Everyone thinks of their grandmother as the sweetest, loving person alive. By the time I came along, she was; however, she was OLD. (I am the youngest grandchild of all eleven living children. So I do not remember much about her.) But the truth of the matter is that Granny Scoggins showed favoritism in a big way. She raised eleven children and had her brother-in-law, Uncle Jesse, living with them, and a son or grandchild along the way staying with them. Uncle Eustice also lived with them after he came back to Tioga. So she really did have a busy difficult life on the farm. The stories told were how she treated her own children differently from each other and how she had favorites amongst her grandchildren. If she liked you, you got a present or an envelope with money in it for Christmas; if she didn't like you, you got nothing. Evidently she passed the envelopes and present out in front of all to see. They also said she spoke her mind and would tell you exactly what she was thinking or thought about a situation.
As always after spending time with others and hearing stories of the family, it just makes me more curious to talk to others to get more details.