Come One, Come All!

Sounds like there's going to be a family reunion amongst the Davidges this summer!

I know lots of families make that an annual event but... us? Not so much. Therefore, getting together the first weekend in August in Blackstone, MA will be noteworthy, certainly.

Jim and Debbie will be hosting at The Compound. We're not the Kennedys but there are a slew of Davidges in a small geographic area. Jim and Deb have my brother and his wife living in their large home as well as their daughter Kim and son Brian. Their eldest child, Shayna, her fiance and their baby-to-be, Haylee Rae, all live in a ginormous apartment above the five-car garage.

Nephew Billy and his wife Nancy live a literal stone's throw away; their yards adjoin, in fact. Their two grown sons have left the area but are still in MA so will hopefully be available for the fun.

Scott, Lin and their two boys live minutes down the road.

That makes Blackstone the reunion Mecca!!

It's a former mill town but the mill's been gone for ages. Now I think it's mostly just a bedroom community. It's closer to Woonsocket (pronounced woon-saw-KET by the mostly French-heritaged locals)than to Boston.

All the MI girls and their kids will be coming. The Cape Cod contingent will make the trek as will the mountain people from the Berkshires. Those of us living in paradise will be on hand as well.

The Davidges are unique in that, while we aren't together all that often, when we DO congregate it's as if we lived in each other's pockets all the time!? There's a perceived closeness amongst us despite the fact that years sometimes go by before we see one another.

It's inexplicable but true.

I'm hoping there will be Scrabble. All the ungrateful upstarts I've taught to play will be in one place and then we'll just SEE who wins in face-to-face matches. I'm thinking a tournament is in order and I plan to reestablish my rule of the roost.

Volleyball will be a biggie with the more fit.

And the pool will get a workout for sure as will the hot tub, you betcha.

Tom will be much-missed just as he should be, that's a given.

There'll be family and food and games and chatter, lots of hugs and kisses, maybe a few tears too but your basic Good Time Had By All.

My father-who-art-in-heaven will be smiling.