An Aunt & Two Nieces

They were smiling at me from two houses ago.

While transitioning Diane’s Lake Winola bedroom into my new writing space I came across an old photo that speaks of a closeness between two nieces and their aunt.

My sister, Jackie, sits happily at its center, glorious in a crisp white blouse. Laura, Diane, and their affectionate smiles are on either side of her. The girls are probably fourteen and sixteen.

All three of them were waiting for their lives to unfold. A lot has happened since the picture was taken.

I pause to appreciate how Jackie has nurtured and guided my daughter and my sister Jennifer’s daughter. It's time to thank her, if I haven't already.

After years of living in Toronto and Holland, Jackie found her true love back home in Newfoundland. Nowadays she keeps busy nurturing a large circle of family and friends.

Diane, my daughter, is in her early thirties. The New Hampshire sweatshirt in the photo hints at the direction of her future. An entrepreneurial young woman, she's lived in Vermont for ten years and has found many friends and one true love.

In the photo Laura is wearing a stylish Italian t-shirt, par for the course. Ever the traveler, this vivacious Toronto girl met her love in Nashville and later found her way to Calgary, where he grew up.

It’s funny how I rediscovered the picture just as Diane and Laura are settling into their adult lives. Looking back, Jackie has remained close with both of them. Now in their thirties, the girls probably call Jackie as often as she calls them.

I think I'll name the picture, "A Loving Aunt and her Two Nieces".