It’s been awhile since you’ve seen Celie, so I made her the cover image for this entry. Just this week though, I enhanced her name to “Celié Pantonette”, given her rich palette of Frenchy tri-colors.
“Let them eat treats!” she commands, as she orders up a snack for her bestie, Poppity. “Allez, dépêche-toi!“
I am corny.. I get it from my mother’s father. He was a McCoy from Knoxville, Tennessee. While I haven’t been able to confirm he was a “real” McCoy yet, the family history of mental health points toward positive.
Fun fact: my mother was born a McCoy and her first husband was a Hatfield.
On the subject of family, two years ago I learned that I have a paternal half-brother, named Michael, who is two and a half years younger than me. I would like to take this moment to send a little pout to the spirit of my father for keeping a secret of my sibling who is a year and a half away from being my Irish twin.
I say it all the time.. you just can’t get away with anything these days, with advancing DNA evidence. This is my own proud little addition to a favorite saying of my maternal grandmother (also from Knoxville), “People’s a gettin’ smart!“
Michael and I are building a strong, well-paced bond now that we know about each other – because I guess we could have gone our entire life, not knowing the truth. Thank you ancestry.com for Christmas specials on your DNA kits that help us sort through the rubble of family lies.
Fun fact: I share a birthday with Julia Roberts and learned that Michael shares his with Julia’s brother, Eric.
My new-found brother loves History as much as I do, and telling him about the very rich history of our father’s side (we are grandchildren of Charlemagne, William the Conqueror, and Robert the Bruys) has been so much fun that I hardly even think about all the stolen, childhood memories..
I will probably write a book someday about all this, if for no other reason than to assist me in keeping up with all my siblings. In the last six years I went from being the 7th child of 9 to being the the 8th child of 11! That could very well change again tomorrow, but for now I am very happy to find my 9th of 11. ❤️
