We spent 4 days in Hershey Pennsylvania for the family reunion. Because of the wedding I was in, I spent only 2 days in Hershey, but my kids got to spend all kinds of crazy time with cousins. There were enough kids for everyone. Each of my kids had at least one cousin their age, and some had two.
The cousin who hosted has a beautiful house that is well over 100 years old.
My great grandmother immigrated from Germany when she was still young, married, and then had 4 very brilliant children who were quite ahead of their time. One went to Cornell and became an engineer. He participated in think tanks that were influential in the invention and development of some of the most advanced technologies we use today. One was a math major, and a woman, and helped program the earliest computers, and then went on to help build a multi-million dollar business based on robotics and advanced technology. One was a genius musician who invented and built several musical instruments that he then used in his church where he brought the beauty of his music to worship there, and his legacy lives on today in what he established there. And one, the youngest, went to college, worked for a while, and then raised a family of geniuses. Her children are a successful vet, an engineer, and an occupational therapist and horse breeder. I imagine my great grandmother and great grandfather looked at their grandchildren as I look at the 5th generation, the kids running around here today. They have huge shoes to fill.
And the adults in this family love the children. They understand and accommodate their behaviors. Yet there is an expectation that the children will listen to adults. The children in this family understand that the adults wouldn’t tell them anything that is not important. There is a great respect for the older generations. They know they come from greatness, and they are to carry it on with humility and focus. They cannot do that if they are misbehaving.
My cousin, the host, volunteered through Kiwanis club at Hershey Park over the past year, and because of that she and her fellow club members received enough free tickets to send our entire family to Hershey Park for the day! My kids were blown away. They are used to Disneyland and its cute little rides. Hershey Park has Six Flags-style rides. It was like tiny birds used to a soft nest sent out on their first flight. It was exciting and terrifying all at the same time. St. George got to ride his first looping roller coaster! Little Lion for the first time ever, reached a limit of adventure. He refused to ride the biggest roller coaster after trying a slightly smaller one. It’s nice to know that he does have a bit of a sense of mortality. Haha! Miss Magpie couldn’t get enough. At one point she said, “That upside down loop drop would be even better if it were twice as high and twice as fast.” I’m not sure there is a roller coaster in the world that could scare her!
Miss Blue felt a little odd-kid-out at first, as all the cousins are so excited to see each other, and tend to be loud and chaotic. But she eventually found her place in the crowd of little girls chasing one another around. Nobody gets left out in this bunch.
Before we left, my family humored me and went on the Hershey World “tour.” I know they have changed some things, but it is essentially the same as it was the first time I rode it at age 7. I’m pretty sure the ride cars have never been replaced. I can remember believing there was real chocolate in the exhibits, and I dreamed of jumping from the ride car into the vat of liquid chocolate. I always liked Mr. Hershey because he gave all of his fortune to the orphans. Hershey still has a sense of serving the orphans, as there is a huge, beautiful boarding school for disadvantaged kids in the town. It’s an American corporate success story in the virtue department.
And just like that, another family reunion has come and gone. It’s something we look forward to for two long years before we can gather again! Next time, it’s in Yellowstone! YES!!!
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