I never had much opportunity to visit or get to know my extended family until I was a teenager. Because of that, I appreciated every moment I spent with them.

I particularly loved visiting my Great Aunt Sylvia’s house in Beaverton, Michigan. I think that was primarily because it was so different from my own house and from that of my grandmother, her sister.

In other words, her house wasn’t in perfect order, and she had stuff. A lot of stuff.

I always wondered if that was a result of her dismissal of my grandmother’s need to abide by society’s expectations or if it was from having been married to my Uncle Joe, a World War I veteran and former mayor of the small town where she lived.

Although he passed away before I ever visited his house, Uncle Joe’s presence was everywhere.

His collector’s whisky decanters lined the entire parameter of the living room, and photos of his time as a grand master in the Masons were everywhere.

While I found those fascinating, what I absolutely loved about Aunt Sylvia’s house was the music. She had an organ that took center stage and lots and lots of sheet music.

Whenever I visited, I always asked if I could play the organ, and she always waved her hand in dismissal indicating that I didn’t even need to ask. And when I found music I liked, she simply told me to take it with me.

I still have that music, and recently my daughter and I sat at the piano playing and singing to songs in a magazine she gave me.

My daughter will never understand what that moment meant to me, but I’m sure Aunt Sylvia would understand.

And that will always make me smile.

Day 65: Gifts from the Heart

Day 64: The Arrival of Fall  Day 63: To Kill a Mockingbird   Day 62: Green Lights Day 61:  My Canine Friends  Day 60:  Differences   Day 59:  A New Box of Crayons   Day 58: Bookworms  Day 57: Being Oblivious   Day 56: Three-day Weekends  Day 55:  A Cat Purring  Day 54: Being a Unique Individual   Day 53: Children’s Artwork  Day 52: Lefties  Day 51: The Neighborhood Deer   Day 50: Campfires  Day 49: Childhood Crushes  Day  48: The Words “Miss You”  Day 47:  Birthday Stories   Day 46: Nature’s Hold on Us  Day 45:  Play-Doh   Day 44: First Day of School Pictures  Day 43: Calvin and Hobbes  Day 42: Appreciative Readers  Day 41: Marilyn Monroe’s Best Quote   Day 40:  Being Silly  Day 39:  Being Happy Exactly Where You Are  Day 38: Proud Grandparents  Day 37: Chocolate Chip Cookies   Day 36: Challenging Experiences that Make Great Stories  Day 35: You Can’t Always Get What You Want  Day 34:  Accepting the Fog    Day 33: I See the Moon  Day 32: The Stonehenge Scene from This is Spinal Tap  Day 31: Perspective  Day 30:  Unlikely Friendships  Day 29: Good Samaritans  Day 28:  Am I a Man or Am I a Muppet?    Day 27: Shadows  Day 26: Bike Riding on Country Roads  Day 25: When Harry Met Sally  Day 24: Hibiscus   Day 23: The Ice Cream Truck  Day 22:  The Wonderful World of Disney   Day 21: Puppy love  Day 20 Personal Theme Songs     Day 19:  Summer Clouds  Day 18: Bartholomew Cubbin’s Victory Day 17:  A Royal Birth    Day 16:  Creative Kids Day 15: The Scent of Honeysuckle   Day 14: Clip of Kevin Kline Exploring His Masculinity Day 13: Random Text Messages from My Daughter     Day 12:  Round Bales of Hay Day 11:  Water Fountains for Dogs    Day 10: The Rainier Beer Motorcycle Commercial Day 9: Four-Leaf Clovers  Day 8: Great Teachers We Still Remember Day  7:  Finding the missing sock   Day 6:  Children’s books that teach life-long lessons Day 5: The Perfect Photo at the Perfect Moment     Day 4:  Jumping in Puddles   Day 3: The Ride Downhill after the Struggle Uphill    Day 2: Old Photographs Day 1: The Martians on Sesame Street