Roberts Family Reunion

First of all, I apologize for not blogging literally all month! We have been anticipating our Seattle trip and after sadly returning back to Utah, I am now in the mood to reflect and think out loud once again :)

This trip was very meaningful for many reasons, so it is necessary I explain how and why we decided to go...

Josh and I had recently gotten in touch with his Aunt Cindy (his dad's sister) through Facebook. Josh never really knew the Roberts side beyond his dad's immediate family. He had lost touch after his mom and dad separated when he was 9 and grew up mostly knowing his mom's side. Thankfully through Cindy he was able to fill in some gaps, like what his real grandfather's name was and the difficult struggles his dad had to go through in his childhood. Not only did it help Josh understand his father more, but it also made him curious as to what blood relatives he had that he never got the chance to know. Cindy told us we should go to the annual Roberts Family Reunion in August. We considered it, and realized that the reunion was close to our 3 year anniversary and decided to plan a vacation around it. Cindy then told Josh's great Uncle Jack and he was overjoyed with the news that we were going to be there.

So we did it! We took the time off work, packed up our little black Honda, and started our drive over 800 miles through Idaho's endless farms and haybales, to Oregon's gorgeous blue rivers and canyons, and into Washington towards Cindy's home in Lynnwood, about 10-15 miles outside of Seattle. Once we passed through Washington's eastern desert area we saw the beautiful vineyards, and then traveled through the mountains with everlasting trees. Ah... trees :) They were so green and so beautiful you could not see through the thick forests if you tried. We rolled down the windows and felt the humid air on our skin. The feeling of freedom and anticipation made me smile and awe over how great this was... how great it was to be away and with the ones I love most.

Cindy was more than generous with her hospitality. I was so overwhelmed with how welcome we felt and how she was so willing to help with anything that we needed. She let us bring our dogs and stay in her RV, which was so great because we had our own separate space and privacy throughout the week.

We arrived late on Friday got our rest for we knew that Saturday was the reunion. While little nervous feelings ran through our veins, they were surpassed by excitement and openness to meeting new people. Not just people... actual family. Would they be nice? Welcoming? Rude? Strange? We didn't know! We only hoped we would fit in somewhere.

We arrived and approached a large gathering of complete strangers. Shortly after we met Uncle Jack... a very unique and charming individual. He appeared to be in his late 70's yet had the spirit of a 20 something. He made a big announcement to everyone and introduced us to the whole family.

I'll be honest... I felt a little out of place. After all, I was not a blood related Roberts, just an in-law with less knowledge of the family than anyone else there. I struggled with names, but surprisingly I was able to carry on conversations. Josh was chatting it up with everyone, meeting cousins, uncles, aunts, and everyone in between. I felt so happy for him but had a hard time shaking my discomfort. But then I thought... isn't that how everyone feels at reunions? Uncomfortable because you onyl catch up once a year if that? I realized that everyone was playing catch up, re-introducing themselves, and reminding each other of their names. I decided to let my nervousness go and put a smile on my face, because really... what was the worst that could happen?

As I outstretched my hand to greet people, they hugged me instead. It seemed as though everyone was welcoming us into the family and we felt so loved, as though we had never lived apart. It was easy because there was a familiarity to each Roberts. They shared struggles while showing their quirky Roberts idiosyncrasies such as their ability to talk and talk (and talk.. and talk...) and their nonjudgemental qualities, accepting everyone for what they were. I swore a little bit, they would swear back. Josh and I went to go smoke a cigarette, and someone would join us. We fit in!

I enjoy being around older people and listening to their stories. The elderly are amazing individuals. I look into their eyes and see wisdom. If you listen to them and really hear what they are saying, you begin to see that they have this understood comfort with themselves and their stories are written in their aged faces. They speak with sweetness and charm. I was starting to really love these people.

We ate cheeseburgers and hotdogs, played a friendly baseball game (Josh caught the last ball, winning the game!), participated in the water balloon toss, and a listened to live acoustic hour. I would never guess The Roberts were so musical because Josh is totally tone def! His Uncle Jack used to promote concerts back in the day booking famous Western Country performers such as Johnny Cash! Uncle Jack and his nephews have even performed and recorded albums in times past. They get together every reunion and play their guitars and sing together. It was so amazing to watch. I actually teared up a few times as they played their versions of the classics.

As we said our goodbyes, hugged everyone, and exchanged phone numbers and emails, Josh and I felt whole, forever engraved with their kind words and hearts.

Here a just a few of the photos we took:

This was just the first day of our Seattle trip.
Check back to read about more stories of our adventures in Seattle :)