We were in Kansas City last week for a Caster family reunion. I found treasure there, and it wasn't even the kind I expected!
First of all....what a great family! There were five brothers, one of which was my dad. We have lost all but one of them in the last few years. I guess it's like the Joni Mitchell song "You don't know what you've got till it's gone"... I could go on about that, but I am about to cry, so I'll move on...........
One of the purposes of this get together was to divide up the belongings of our Uncle Bob and Aunt Edna. Now, to make a very long story shorter, B & E had in their possession a picture that had belonged to our Grandma and Grandpa Caster. I had loved that picture when I was a child, and when it went to them years later, I knew I could never have it in a million years! (I did not know that my mom wanted it when my grandmother's things were divided) But Edna had it and I knew she did not like me. (another revelation....I found out last week that she didn't like most of us!) I'm not sure why that is, but I will take the high road and try to understand why she was the way she was....move on again Sara.........
Over the last 30 years, and I am not kidding about this, I have looked in every antique shop I've ever been in for "the picture." I even had Gerry and our kids looking for it. (They had never seen it so it was a challenge. Last year, my brother John found a black and white version on ebay, but it just wasn't the same! We did find out that the artist was English and his work was found primarily there.
So, at the reunion we were told we were going to have a lottery to choose the items we wanted. I had told myself, my brother John, Gerry and the kids that I really didn't care and if it was meant to be, the picture would be mine! John came around with an envelope full of numbers and told me it was my turn to draw. I turned my head and stuck my hand in the envelope..............fumbled to open the folded bit of paper....it said #1. I cried.
So here is the short part....the picture is mine! I have to believe in divine intervention at this point. It was damaged in shipping, so the glass will be replaced and I am going to have it reframed.
Now, I said before that I found treasure on this day. Well, I would have thought it was the picture, but it wasn't. My brother John had taken care of our aunt and uncle's estate as they had no children. He did a wonderful job of distributing their assets to 17 nieces and nephews on both sides of their family. While he was getting their house ready for sale, he ran across boxes of diaries. It turns out that our grandmother, Ora Caster had kept a daily diary for maybe fifteen years or so. John read them and each one of us got a year that we had been referenced in. In my case, it was 1976, the year Gerry and I were married. What an amazing gift. It was like getting a snap shot of those days! She was very short and to the point, but for me it was like a being transported back to Jan. 3rd 1976. This is one of the reasons I wanted to start a blog. Maybe someday Claire and Luke will look back on this and say Wow, Nana Sara was quite a lady!
Who knew I could get so long winded? I promise not to do that all the time. I just really wanted to tell how I found treasure in KC!
