Today I am grateful for Kerry's brothers and sisters.
He grew up with ten brothers and sisters! Five brothers and five sisters!!
I can recall forty years ago when he and I flew to Utah so I could meet his family. First of all, the house was so big I wasn't sure I would ever remember where everything was.
Then, all of these people started appearing!
I grew to love them. Actually, I fell in love with them before I fell in love with Kerry. And yes, he knows this.
Kerry has often told me treasured stories from his childhood. Some were good. Some were not so good. Every type of personality you could imagine surrounded him.
Early in our marriage, I couldn't understand why Kerry didn't always answer me when I was asking a question, or just commenting on a tv show. Friend BeLinda Louise Stacks gave me the right way to solve this.
She said, "Peggy, when you grow up in a big family, you probably feel no one is actually talking to you. It's got to be someone else. So, get Kerry's attention first by saying his name or touching his arm. Then, he'll know it's him."
Bingo!
Kerry's siblings are scattered around the globe as of late. There aren't the big family gatherings at his parents' ranch in central Utah anymore. I don't really know if there will ever be any more gatherings like there used to be. Perhaps when one passes.
They're all getting older now. Kerry is 65, and he is #5 in the birth order. An older brother has already passed at age 19. And, one of his sisters passed in 2000 from ALS.
But, I am grateful for these adults who helped mold him into the person he is today. (Again, words from my mother..."if you can get along with your own family, you can get along with anyone in the world")
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