Grace a Dieu and US Airways, Stella and Mom did finally arrive on American soil. Mom says that, according to Ye Beautiful Olden Mappes - the wall calandar she found in Omi's downstairs restroom - she and Stella are now somewhere around the spot marked by a red X on the following picture.
And even if the above mappe shows Francia as being located just slightly north of Florida, I - Malcolm that is - know very well that we men - Henry, Max, Thierry and I - are actually in the place circled in red on this next mappe...
...Mom's been using these mappes to home school Stella while she's in the States...They've proved quite useful for a couple good lessons :geography and spelling, naturally.
If you're wondering what the other red X on the above mappe shows, well, that would be Mammer's birthplace. And who exactly is this mysterious Mammer of Cheesie fame? Why she was Mom's grandmother, of course, matriarch of the Darnay clan (by the way, matriarch is the cool learned word for mother-in-chief). Mammer was born Beatrix Gyulafia on the 2nd of July, 1912 in Budapest, Hungary.
And here she is :
Omi challenged Mom to find a picture of Mammer in the attic and...
...despite the clutter of boxes and bookshelves, Mom did. These pictures were originally taken by some long lost friend but they were reformatted by Mom's cousin Jennifer back in 2006 as a gift for Opi's 70th birthday.
Way back in the days when family photos only came in black and white, back when those mappes up there were still in use - as Mom taught Stella in home History class - Mammer was teaching her daughter and daughter-in-laws more important things, like how to make Cheesies. Cheesies are baked cheese sticks which are served as before-dinner snacks (gateaux apperitifs, bien sur) on special occasions and only on special occasions! Those ladies then taught their daughters and now Monique is teaching Stella...
And here she is :
Omi challenged Mom to find a picture of Mammer in the attic and...
...despite the clutter of boxes and bookshelves, Mom did. These pictures were originally taken by some long lost friend but they were reformatted by Mom's cousin Jennifer back in 2006 as a gift for Opi's 70th birthday.
Way back in the days when family photos only came in black and white, back when those mappes up there were still in use - as Mom taught Stella in home History class - Mammer was teaching her daughter and daughter-in-laws more important things, like how to make Cheesies. Cheesies are baked cheese sticks which are served as before-dinner snacks (gateaux apperitifs, bien sur) on special occasions and only on special occasions! Those ladies then taught their daughters and now Monique is teaching Stella...
...Stella learns better from Monique than from Mom...
She also learns better from Omi too, of course! Mom's thinking of leaving Stella's home schooling to those ladies...
So what was the special occasion?
Well, Mammer's daughter and daughter-in-laws were having a Michigan get-together! Of course, there just had to be Cheesies! Thanks Monique!
Many hugs were given and shouts of joy could be heard...
...mostly from the women...
...because those dark, old men need more than Cheesies to make them all giddy with good cheer...
...the traditional "I can't believe how much you've grown!" remark was said by Aunt Peggy to Stella using proper North American protocole. Peggy holds to traditional, North American family values and we love her for it! Thank you, Peggy!
(Mom told us she thinks she also heard Peggy use the traditional words with Monique too... but I doubt it since protocole clearly stipulates that those words should only really be used with growing children. As far as I know, Monique hasn't actually grown in a very long time.)
In the end, when all the hugs had been given and all the Cheesies had been et, Mom said everyone still had room for dinner! Here they were sitting down to the first of a series of delightful meals...
Like breakfast. Mmmmmm! We want doughnuts too!Bon appetit and good day to all!
Missing from this get-together collage is John, the other half of "MoJo", the short way we say Monique and John here, for those in the know. The poor man was downed by a BAD cold and very thoughtfully did not want to spread the irritating sniffles and headaches he had endured for a couple of days by then. Fortunately, he has now recovered and we have had a most delightful get-together at MoJo's Lake House. As always accompanied by delicious snacks, meals, and stimulating conversations.
ReplyDeleteAs I am writing this, we have heard from our visitors that they have by now arrived at home safe and sound. These visits, as always, are much too short to catch up on all those news and views and other things that one wants to share or know about. But even short visits are a delight to the soul. I am already planning the next one...
Michelle and Stella, fortunately, will stay with us for a while longer and we will be able to share more enjoyable days.
Yes, family reunions are few and far between, precious, like lovely punctuations in life.
ReplyDeleteWhat fun. Cheers to our men in Paris who could not be part of this family reunion but... were here in spirit and... have reported on the proceedings remarkably nicely...