Family visiting was the best present of all

We celebrated my mother’s 87th birthday last week. There have been many times in the last few years when I couldn’t imagine that she would live this long. I am eternally grateful that my fears were unfounded.
 My cousins, Kim and Tim, joined the celebration as well as my brothers and I. Kim brought her daughter, Danielle. Mom was happy to be surrounded by her family. I was happy that she was happy.
 I arrived first and gave her a present. She asked why I had stuffed colorful paper into the top of the gift bag. She thought it was to make it look like she had received more than she did. I explained that it just made it look pretty.
 She actually liked what I got for her. This is very unusual and it made us both smile. My brother, Michael, was next to arrive. He had dropped off his wife at a reunion for her family. Her mother has brain cancer and it may have been the last time extended relatives had a chance to visit with her. Michael was planning to join them later in the day.
 Kim and Danielle arrived shortly before Tim and his wife, Deb. Tim brought the biggest watermelon I had ever seen and dropped in onto my lap. My brother, David, and his wife, Apryl, trickled in last.
 We all talked at once. It reminded me of when I was a little girl and all the aunts, uncles, and cousins would visit. The major difference was that we weren’t shooed outdoors while the grownups talked. This time we were the grownups.
 Even so, most of us ended up outside anyway. Deb and Mom were left inside to chat about their mutual interest in crocheting. They eventually joined us in the blazing sun. It was the first time in a very long time that Mom had been in the backyard. She is too afraid of falling to go out without help.
 We didn’t want Mom to get overheated so we all trailed back in. Danielle commented on the finches in the kitchen. We told her there used to be more but one day Mom took a bunch of them outside and set them free. To this day, she swears any small bird she sees outside is one of her finches. Who knows? As unlikely as it is, she could be right.
 We ate watermelon, cheesecake and cookies. The pie I had brought didn’t thaw as soon as I had hoped and the knife got stuck when I tried to cut it. Jadyn, David and Apryl’s son, stopped by. He is working nights and had just gotten up.
 Kim commented on his red hair. We explained that not only had he gotten the color from our side of the family, Apryl’s mother also had red hair. We would have been surprised if it had been any other hue.
 We caught up on current events before the talk turned to our grandparents and I gleaned several tidbits to add to the family history. When it comes to families, everybody holds a piece to the puzzle. Although each piece adds to the whole, the puzzle can never be complete. It is this mystery that adds to the fascination for me.
 People started drifting away. Mom had long since quit trying to follow the conversation and had taken up one of her craft projects. Eventually, I was left alone with her. I completed several small household chores before getting ready to leave. She asked me to go get her some supper and I did.
 As I drove home, I reflected on the day. Although I am the oldest of the cousins, I am the only one with a living parent. All of the others have died.
 All of my aunts and uncles were blessed with so much more than Mom was, yet she is the one who survives. As far as I am concerned, there is no rhyme nor reason to explain the mysteries of life. There is just the memory of a perfect day spent with those I love.
 We celebrated Mom’s birthday last week. She received the best present of all; she was surrounded by people who cherish her just the way she is. We should all be so lucky.