Another has Passed On. . .

Judie's Aunt Tattie died at the age of 87 years. She had been living with her daughter, Pattie, over near Corpus Cristie, Texas. She resided by herself in a small cabin surrounded by her flowers and garden. It sounds as though she was happy.

Like Aunt Bobbe, she to had a bad fall, broke a hip and did not recover from the operation. Yes, like Bobbe, she made it through the ordeal of surgery, but recovery was not to be.

He husband, Ford Gremillion, was the youngest of the four brothers. There was an older brother but he died as youth. That was Fred. The remaining brothers were Wilmark (Bill - Judie's father), Roland, Elson (Snub) and Ford. Ford and Bill, the nickname for Wilmark, moved to New Roads after WW-II to open a branch of Gremillion Brothers Tractor business. Snub stayed on the farm and Roland ran the Gremillion Brothers tractor business in Cotton Port, Louisiana.

Bill and Ford worked hard and well together and built up a business in New Roads. That eventually became just plain "Gremillion's." They had become independent of the Cotton Port operation. The business lasted a bit over 50 years and was sold out. It was either sell out or go broke and no one wanted to go broke.

It is ironic that when my exsister-in-law died, Ford too died. So we were in New Roads to attend two funerals. Betty's funeral was in the morning and Ford's was in the afternoon. Betty's visitation was at the church and we were there to see all the family.

Now, Betty, had remarried - remarried my exbrother-in-law, Nickie Neck. So while at the visitation all Betty's children - who are nieces and nephews of mine and all of Nickie's children - who are all nieces and nephews of mine were in attendance. Father Shaztle, the Catholic Priest came out to see us before the rituals. He approached me and asked, "Which side of the family are you with?" A nice question but loaded me up with great ammunition.

I replied, "Father, see all these young people." And of course, he nodded that he did. "They are all my nieces and nephews."

I got a strange look. So I explained the relationships. He was taken aback a bit but understood.

Later that day at the funeral home, Nilands, we met again. He gave me a strange look clearly recognizing me. I said to him, "Ford Gremillion is my wife's uncle." I am sure at that moment, he must have thought I was related to everybody in New Roads.

I chided him saying his homily must be different, I knew as a Catholic, it could not be all new. He replied, "I got to use some of the words over again." We chuckled together. The Padre in my mind was an outstanding priest, pity the Bishop moved him on to another parish.

So we return Monday to New Roads again to say good bye to Tattie. We drive in Monday, the funeral is Tuesday. And we will shuffle off to Weatherford on Wednesday. Being retired it is only a matter getting the energy up to make the trip.

Judie will get to see her high school buddy, best friend and almost cousin, Cherry. Cherry and Milly are daughters of Tattie from a former marriage so are not blood relatives but treat each other as they are indeed cousins. Does it matter, no. It is still family. Two other children of the marriage, Charlie and Pattie are indeed her cousins as they were Ford's children.

We now we close the book on that generation from Avoyelles, from Cotton Port, from that era of expansion after the great war. Little did Bill and Ford realize but that their family roots were from Pointe Coupee and go back to the 1700s. Their family were early settlers of Avoyelles Parish. And they, the Gremillions, have a rich history in Pointe Coupee Parish. So Bill and Ford were really returning to their roots and did not know it until my mother did all the research to get my wife, Judie, into the DAR. Then it all came out.

What's that someone said, we are all separated by six degrees of freedom. When I re-typed my mothers book on early marriages of Pointe Coupee, I realized that due to sparse populations, many families are indeed interrelated by marriage. So most of all the old families of Pointe Coupee are related to each other. I guess the six degrees is correct.

Perhaps, that's how that greeting endearment found in Louisiana got started. That greeting is "Hello, Cus." Maybe we are truly all cousins.