Relative Peace

Some people say there are cousins in every corner. That is almost true but my cousin supply is dwindling these days. Many have moved away or have died or are too old to drive. With eight aunts and uncles on either end of my parents, their off-spring supplied me with dozens of cousins. In those days, none of us lived and worked further than a hundred miles away from each other. While we made friends with the neighbourhood kids, our true friends were our cousins. We were closer to them than other children because we stayed, not at hotels, but at each others' homes. We took "holidays" at our cousin's places. People did not get into campers and go off unless a flotilla of relatives went also. Aunts and uncles came to visit and along with them cousins poured out of back seats of cars and trucks and flew into our yard and we played. Yes, we actually played. There were no plastic parks or "play dates", we just headed out to the bushes and ran around  or jumped rope or got out the board games. We made forts and climbed trees and unfortunately stole apples or plums from the yards of the rich who had orchards and knew it was us or we went to the park and worked out at what we called baseball. We had fun and at eventide and when it was suppertime, we sat at the kid table installed at the end of the big people table. We gabbled about our own matters and paid no attention to the serious talk of the adults. Children in those days were seldom seen and never heard. We had our own lives and freedoms without a lot of parental interference or organized sport schedules. We slept in close quarters, often in the same big double beds. Here we told secrets and giggled over family tales. As we grew up and became more formal in our relationships, we retained a closeness that made us realize "blood is thicker than water". We are still close and although, at times, there are minor falling-outs, we continue to support each other and care about each life. When someone is sick or dies, we are there. Divorce happens but the relative that once was, still is and is not left out. All legals are put aside. Even today with cousins marrying people who live in other provinces or countries and who have families, we feel the same about each other. At family reunions, the cousins bring their children and grandchildren, some with great grandchildren. You can see the family resemblances and hear some of the learned phrases. You recall the enhanced tales of childhood. You see how loved the young ones are and wish they could know each other as we did. If it is a country reunion and there are woods about, we see these newies crash about as we did and it makes us smile and remember. Sadly, at dinner, out come the social killers, those devices, the hand-held nasties and the children turn into zombies with faces that say nothing and mouths that don't speak to another warm human right next to one. At the end of the day, each family goes off to their own tent or RV or house and there is no  sleeping next to the kid who knows what you mean when you hurt or are glad or have something you want to ask.  "Relative peace" that once was is no more. And we wonder where gangs come from, the new-age "cousins"?