Dear Jean, I hope the holidays find you and Bill well and happy. I feel that
I have been out of touch for such a long time but we have finally completed
our move back to Virginia. We are in Blacksburg where we started our life
together all those years ago and it is absolute heaven. I know that you
can't truly go home again as everything changes by the moment but this is as
good as it gets for me. Do you have Lillian's address or phone number handy
as I can't find it among the boxes and mess we live in for the time being.
We moved into our house on the Friday before Thanksgiving and had 11 people
for the BIG dinner including 3 for the weekend and we have just today put
Carl's 92 year old father on the plane for home after two weeks and the
family celebration here. I am absolutely not complaining because tis why we
came back, but my timing could have been better! Do you know ilf anyone has
turned up either where our great Uncle Jim went or where our Alexander came
from? With all these descendents one would think some of us would have the
luck to find the answer to the question. Our daughter is with us for the
holidays from Los Angeles and brought the tapes of the HBO special Band of
Brothers, if you haven't seen it try to get a copy or watch for the reruns.
We had a cousin in the 101 paratroopers who was in a POW camp for quite a
while and my father drove an LST at Omaha Beach so it is always an emotional
journey for me as it must be for many of us of this generation. I tried to
tell everyone why I am so grateful for the opportunity to return home and all
I could think of to say was the bit of a quote I remember of Charles Kuralt
that a Virginian never gets the dirt from under their nails no matter how far
they move, and it seems to be especially true for our family. I have been
able to read the letters concering the recent unpleasentness in out beloved
country and although I know we have our faults I believe we are among the
most generous of people and those who resent our help and prosperity are free
to say "no thank you". I try to stay off the family with my political views
and have no desilre to restart the latest deluge although I must say I do
love it when the StClair starts coming out in everyone. With that said I bid
all a best of holidays whatever they celebrate and may we all find some peace
and brotherhood in the coming year. Charlotte Gellis, Charles P. StClair's
granddaughter
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