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Temperature Check
When’s The Last Time You’ve Checked In With Extended Family?
I have a pretty large family. My father’s parents had 10 children who grew up and had their kids.
By that math, I had around 40-something cousins growing up at my grandmother's house. I would see them regularly during the holidays and a few birthdays throughout the year. They grew up in a small town about 3 hours away from my parent’s home.
In the legion of cousins I had, I was about the 7th oldest of the group. Thus, I had a lot of younger cousins following my path as we grew up. They looked up to me. We were all close as kids.
As the years passed, all the cousins grew up. We all started fanning out with new romantic partners, new jobs, and new geographical locations. It was just life, breaking the band up.
Though we would still convene during the holiday seasons, I would physically see them less and less. We all would talk less and less.
So this past Friday, I decided to reach out to one of my cousins who is also temporarily working in the same city as I am. We meet at a local bar to grab a few drinks and catch up.
This cousin also works in the same field as I do. We exchange the new things going on in our personal lives and work stories while giving him more…
