I received this on another list. It is a nice read with a good message to all of us who search the past. > Subject: SUNDAY MORNING COFFEE > > > THE LOST > > Whoosshhhh!! > > She looked around. Where was she? People surrounded her for what > seemed like miles and miles! Where in the world had they all come > from? One minute she was alone, the next she was sitting amidst this > huge crowd! There was no sky; there was no earth. What kept this mass > of people so closely grouped together? > > ....and the DUST! Whew! Between that and the overbearing pressure of > the crowd, she felt as though she could hardly breath! > > Then she saw them, her family. There were her parents and all eleven > siblings! Why, that's her as a young girl and there's her long-dead > sister, a child again! Over there were her husband and eight children! > She looked around a little more and found a few of her aunts, uncles and > even some cousins! Everyone seemed to be there ~ a REUNION! Oh, yes! > > But there were also many, many people she didn't know. "Let's think on > the positive side of things, though," she thought. Just look at > everyone she DID recognize! > > Look at her dad! He's so proud of his family! You can see his pride by > the way he stands, his shoulders thrown back. The long, hard years of > farming show in his weathered face. Her mother looks delicate in the > face; those long skirts covering her frailness. She won't live much > longer... the doctor said she shouldn't have had so many children. > > She noticed her two grandfathers by the oxen-pulled wagon. Both her > grandmothers and both families' children were in it. She saw her father > as a boy! "Everyone is on their way to a Fourth of July community > picnic," he'd once told her. To look at them their clothes weren't the > finest ~ rather plain actually. One grandfather wears a beaten up hat > as proudly as though it were a gentleman's derby. > > And there!... there are six of her great-grandparents! Those people > pioneered this area. Two pairs of those grandparents made their way > over to America ~ one from Germany, the other from Ireland. Best > friends, they are and what a combination of personalities they make. > One of the great-grandmothers was even a handmaiden to the queen herself > before she got married! But they all died, the last one 17 years ago, > wasn't it? How could they be here now? > > And just in front of her ... her mother had once told her they were her > great-great grandparents from the old country! They look a little > smudged. How in the world could they be here in this crowd? They look > like they might be awfully warm in those heavy clothes. Her first > impressions of them hadn't changed ~ he still looked friendly; she still > looked strict! > > What's going on? she wondered. > > See those two women over there? One is a cousin to her, the other just > an acquaintance. The two young women are best friends, so close you'd > think they were sisters. They have their arms wrapped around each > other. They once vied for the attentions of a young man, but she > doesn't see him in the crowd. Did either of them marry that man? > > She looked at the two women more closely. Why does her cousin's friend > have that scar across her face? Her friend didn't have that before > ....at least, it looks like a scar. > > Some of them had names, some didn't. She was one who didn't. Some were > in groups of full families, while others just one or several people. > Some were dressed in their Sunday best; others in worn and ragged > clothing used for working. The styles of dress of the children was as > mixed as the adults they co-mingled with. The old, old gowns of some of > the the women ... how could this be? How could these people who had > already passed on be here with all these younger people today? What > kind of a reunion is this? > > Whooshhhh! She felt the cool air waft around her. It wasn't as crowded > anymore; the dust was still in the air but it wasn't as choking. > Where'd everyone go? She felt as though she was being looked at. > > "This one doesn't have a name, either." > > Whooshhh! Back into the crowd again! > > This is crazy! > > Wait! Who is that? That woman who is standing with her hand on the > man's shoulder as he sits? Who IS that??? > > Her sister! It's her sister! > > It can't be. She died when a horse pulling a wagon ran over her 9 years > ago! What a beautiful woman she was before she died. But she and her > husband look so faded now... > > There wasn't a mirror to look in, but she knew the dress she was wearing > wasn't the one she had on earlier today. As a matter of fact, she > hadn't worn this dress since she was 18! > > Dateline 2002: Antique Store, Any City, Any Country > > "These old pictures, just look at all of them ~ tintypes, sepia-tones ~ > all kinds! They sure are dusty! Some of them are in pretty bad shape, > too." > > "I know, it's such a pity that a lot of them don't have names. They're > from quite a few old estates. We just took all the pictures and stuck > them in that box to get them out of the way. It's rare that anyone > looks at them, but we have an occasional customer who looks through > them. If we get too many more pictures though, we'll probably have to > throw these out to make more room. We'll get rid of those unmarked ones > first." > > FINIS > > And so it goes, a dusty box of old pictures sits in yet another out of > the way place in one of the world's antique shops (or maybe even a flea > market or garage sale). Some of the photographs may be marked with > names, dates, places, and/or relationships; many aren't. Certainly, all > of the people in the box had life stories, most of which will never be > known to future generations. If you haven't figured it out yet, "she" > was one of the unmarked pictures in the box ~ one of the lost souls. > > I wonder how many of us will become one of the lost souls in yet another > dusty box of unmarked, unwanted, uncared-for photographic treasures. > How many of our descendants will end up saying, "I haven't the slightest > idea who s/he is but s/he sure looks familiar!" Is that really what you > want, gentle reader? Are your pictures labeled? Will your > grandparents, parents, sister, even YOU be known to your descendants 3-4 > generations from now? > > Obviously this was a work of fictional fantasy, for we KNOW that souls > aren't really attached to pictures ...are they? > > ~~~