October in North Carolina

A conference in North Carolina allowed me to take 2 weekends and visit the Flemings, Nugents, and Maureen's children and grandchildren. What a time! It was beautiful fall weather. A quick stop in Charlotte for dinner with Neil and breakfast with his kids, and then off to The Cliffs in western North Carolina where Teri and Chick built their new home in the side of a mountain--a golf haven, and a view of Greenville that goes forever. I got to spend some time with Teri and her daughter Suzanne who now lives in Greenville and catch up on what's been going on over the past few years. So great to see them again, and a reminder of how much Teri makes me laugh. Off to the conference in Durham which gave me a chance to take my great nephew Charlie to dinner. Charlie is now at NC State, and I was pleased to find conversation with him easy and we got to connect as adults, and I enjoy that transformation of our relationship. I spent a night with Kelly and Chris and their clan in Stonesville--a beautiful home that Chris built himself, making it all the better. I caught Reese's play at his high school (watch out Johnny Depp!), and Silas's lacrosse game before heading to Kathy's who graciously hosted a dinner so I could see everyone else. Lisa Zappolo drove up from So Carolina to spend the afternoon with us, and it was wonderful to connect with everyone. I learned that the Avis grandchildren do not know much about the Irish or their heritage, which sent me on a mission to give them more information about the Harts and the Ryans. Terry interviewed by father on Christmas Day, 1981, and Dad talked about his grandfather, born in Tipperary, and the rest of his family, plus all the years he spent living in a dozen different places in NY before settling in White Plains. So all the grandchildren got a CD of the interview and a family tree--hopefully, it will send them to Ireland one of these days to learn about who they are and where they came from.