Many pictures from the Miller family past can be seen here.
http://sites.google.com/site/millerfamilyunite/home
I am truly a “home body”. I would prefer to be in my home better than any where else. Even though I live alone it still is the one place in the world that I can just be me twenty four hours a day. I like the feel of my bed, the antics of my crazy dog and cat, and the warm comfort of my “things” around me. It’s a relief to be home after a long weekend away!
This past weekend I went to our “Miller” family reunion. This is the family on my father’s side. There were well over one hundred people at the reunion which was held in Dexter, Michigan at the Hudson Metro Park. The weather was pretty good and we all had a pleasant time out under the trees. Many of us waited until the last of the day to leave. People came from all over the country to visit with family they hadn’t seen in years. I was really surprised and impressed at my brothers as they made this reunion a priority. I have ten brothers and nine of them made it to this reunion. Many of my brothers live in Alaska but they worked vacation time around this event. All of the Miller families were represented. The only one missing from our family was my brother Jim who lives in Mexico. I’m sure he would have come if he was able to find a way. Much thanks goes to the Nye family which orchestrated this reunion. Aunt Katie Nye is my father’s baby sister. There are only three Miller girls left, Katie, Ester and Glady. All of the other brothers and sisters from the Miller family have passed away including my dear father. My father would have been proud of his boys and girls for making this reunion a priority. Three of us were so tied to our dogs that we brought them with us but I must say all of the dogs were on their best behavior!
It was a potluck and there was plenty to eat all day long! We played Euchre and had an auction to raise money for the next reunion which will be in two years. We also celebrated my Aunt Esters ninetieth birthday. 
She was thrilled that so many came to this reunion. I think she was truly tickled to see everyone. Aunt Glady didn’t make it and I’m not sure why. Aunt Katie made a baby blanket that was auctioned off and that was quite a memento as she is in her early eighties.
It’s always difficult to have long meaningful conversations when you’re trying to get around and see family that you haven’t seen in years when there are so many of them. I didn’t get to really talk with everyone like I would have liked but I totally enjoyed the day. I would have enjoyed even more time visiting. I bought a rather large framed artwork that I will be taking to school. It’s one wild and rather primitive looking cat. I will be using it as a sample for a special project my students will work on. It was so much fun bidding against my brother Toby. He ended up with one and I ended up with the other. I think his plan was to bid me up and I was supposed to get both of them. I foiled that one when he had to pay for one of them. He was flying so our cousin Jim agreed to take it back to New Mexico with him. I had a pleasant time talking with Jim as he had visited the Frederick Meijer Gardens in Grand Rapids and saw the Dale Chihuly exhibit. I saw it Memorial Weekend so it was fun talking about the art.
There weren’t a lot of young people. I think it’s hard to get them to this type of an event. I know my son wasn’t too keen on giving up his weekend so he stayed home in Chicago. I did have a nice talk with Linda Steigenga’s daughter, Kayla and her husband. She’s a dog lover like me and brought her beautiful Border Collie/Australian Shepherd mixed dog to the reunion. She and her husband are both attending Ferris State University. She reminded me so much of her mother just as Linda reminds me of her mother. The cycle just continues. We are all from our parents. A part of them lives in each of us. My cousin Carol is always the life of the party. She came over and gave me a hug. I told her she smelled good and she told me that was “sex”. It ended up being “White Diamonds” but Carol made it possible for me to put her husband Joe on the spot. I love Carol as she is hilarious and always ready for a good time. I partnered with my brother Pete in the Euchre tournament. It was probably a bad decision as both our cards were horrible. We crashed and burned fast. It didn’t really matter though as there were many other people to visit.
In our hearts I know that all of us were thankful for the opportunity to see each other and break bread together in the spirit of our parents. Our heritage invites stories of the past but this group was working on stories for the future. Many met and reminisced about the past and caught up on the day. Many grew up close but scattered like the wind when their jobs took them far away. We are all descendants of the Miller family with a rich heritage of large families, Catholicism and sharing. We were a community in the homes we grew up in and we were a community on this day. We came together and shared like one heart beat the experiences of our lives, good and bad, that made us who we are today. I will treasure this day and my heritage. I will embrace the memory of my kin and pray that all remain healthy until we meet again.
