Such a big dose of the feels today. We went to a family reunion this afternoon down near Sugar Island, Wisconsin. I met many Fredericks I’ve never met before, and it was an absolute blast! The Frederick family is good folk!
On our drive down, we drove past some places where some childhood memories were made. We drove through Fox Lake, and I recalled how we met up with family at Mullin’s Drive-In for burgers and sodas. Then we drove past Grandma and Grandpa’s old place in Juneau….it’s absolutely nothing like it used to be. I remember fishing in Grandpa’s “pond” out front. Adam and I would go stay over there for a couple of days during summers. I can still hear the mosquito zappers that buzzed alllllll night long on their porch. The smell of Grandma’s breakfast and listening to Polka on the old radio next to their dining room table. Staying out in Grandpa’s “Doll House” in “bunk beds”–long story! The leisure drives out to see other family members. We’d go to Juneau Cemetery where he would show us where he would be buried, laying down by his headstone and saying, “Well, how do I fit?!” It sounds like a macabre experience, but we can’t help but laugh because of Grandpa’s unique personality.
All of these memories and emotions just came rushing back on our trip. I am going through old photos tonight, and I found photos of some of these events I just mentioned. I still can’t visit them at the cemetery without sobbing after all this time–wishing to have a few more minutes. To catch up, to let them meet their great-grandsons and granddaughter-in-law, to say “I love you” just one more time.
(Right) Our family at Mullen’s Drive-In – ’99
Austin M. Frederick 