Kieschnick Family Reunion 2018 - No.27

The Oscar and Lina Kieschnick 27^th consecutive annual reunion was, as always, a great success. This one, however, was a bit different for me. For the first time in its long history I was the oldest person there, even though I am only 90 years of age and number three in birth order of “The Original Nine.” Sister Erna who is 94 had fallen and broken a wrist and so stayed home I Florida. Sister number 2, Leona, has severe Altzheimers and stayed behind in her memory care unit. Thus I was the proclaimed elder statesman.

On this trip I had some undeniable evidence that I am indeed ageing. I had typed in the incorrect pick-up date for my car rental at the San Antonio airport. Procedures for checking in for flights has changed and I was slow to catch on and relied upon my patient, always more proficiently computer skilled wife Jane. When nephew George put together the rules for the golf tournament he allowed for persons older than 80 to play from the forward tees (and he knew that I was the only one who met that criteria.) By the time the last of the Texas 42 players went to bed around 2:00 am I had long before been fast asleep. Age cannot be denied - and it can also be celebrated. I drank my full share of the beer that flowed from the three full barrels of Shiner Boeck and Miller Lite. I stayed within the one-minute time limit when giving the update on my life. I still sang from memory all the verses of hymns at the wonderful closing worship.

Niece Kari who did an unbelievably fantastic job of pulling together this entire event of well over 100 of our Kieschnick clan did a super job of having an update on every one of the extended family. As I listened to all the jobs now held by all (and especially also by all the women) it hit me. My Mother never had these options. She could be a teacher, a nurse or a secretary. Yet her contribution to her family, to the church and to the world cannot be surpassed even by the wonderful things the current generation is achieving. I remembered and thanked God and Mom. She raised 9 children, lived through the great depression, supported Dad, gave birth to 9 children. She sewed, washed, hung on the line to dry and ironed our clothes, canned 800 quarts of fruit and vegetables in one summer. She butchered and fried young chickens week after week and year after year. She took care of all 9 of us when we had mumps, chicken pox, red eye, measles, whooping cough, annual birthday parties, broken ones and broken romances. And I recall Dad and his ministry to the church and the world. I recalled how his mom and dad had put him on that solitary and slow train ride from Lincoln, Texas to Chicago in 1913 when he was only 13 years of age as he left to prepare for his lifetime ministry in the Lutheran Church. He taught multi-grade classrooms, was principal, organist, choir director, janitor, church secretary, state-wide chair of Lutheran teachers, counselor to hundreds, toast master extraordinaire, etc. etc.

Our closing worship featured the singing of favorite hymns of Mom and Dad and of the Original 9, an essay on Martin Luther by a fifth generation 11-year old William and a powerful trumpeting of Taps by great nephew Brandon.

After arriving back home safely to our retirement community in California I reflected upon the fat that the annual cost to Jane and me for the reunion (covering airfare, car rentals, hotels, meals, golf, etc. etc.) comes to about $2000 a year. So I guess we have spent in excess of $50,000 to make all these 27 Annual Reunions. I came to a wonderful conclusion. “Thank God we can afford this. It is worth every penny.”