Family Reunion


The morning was unusually cool for August in Texas. We rose early in preparation for the drive ahead.  The day had come for the biennial Bordovsky/Hudec family reunion.  I was ambivalent about it, as was my husband if I am to speak honestly.  However, his mother is 93 so who knows how many more of these get-togethers she will be able to attend so we dressed, grabbed up our contribution to the table -- traditional Czech kolaches -- picked up Granny and off we went.

After about an hour and half drive and a Starbucks stop, we arrived at the small, central Texas community of Elk.

Countryside around Elk, Texas behind St. Joseph's Catholic Church

 Elk is situated outside of Waco and is primarily a farming/cotton growing community.  It's only claim to fame, to my knowledge, is that the Elk store was the ATF headquarters during the seige at the David Koresh Branch Davidian community, Mount Carmel,  back in 1993.

Memorial to the ATF agents who were lost in the Branch Davidian conflict in 1993

My husband's grandfather immigrated from Moravia in about 1884 as did the Kubitza family--his grandmother's family.  Little did they know that the families would come together again years later in a marriage which combined Grandfather's family from another marriage, Grandma's family from another marriage and grew with a number of children from their own union.  It was a big family and these families continued to grow which meant these reunions were large, loud, rambuctious affairs!  When I started going to these reunions I was amazed at the number of people who attended.  We would take family group photos that were as large as classroom group photos.

Over time, however, the family inevitably began to shrink.  Many family members have been lost -- from the youngest to the oldest -- and now only three of the original "children" remain.  The extended families have grown up and been scattered all over.  There doesn't seem to be a really good time of the year for everybody to get together but the cousins that do the planning do the best they can to be accommodating. This year there were only two children, my grandchildren, so there was a sharp contrast to past reunions.

These reunions take place at the Catholic church -- St. Joseph's -- that the family has been involved with for generations.  It is a small church with a small cemetery and a really nice parish hall.  The food is outstanding -- and there is always so much.  The desserts are mouthwatering -- pecan pies, fruit cobblers, German chocolate cake and, of course, kolaches.

St. Joseph's Catholic Church, El, TX

The concession stand!

We socialized, caught up, missed the three that were lost since the last reunion, looked at beautiful, old photos scattered on the tables, ate our fill and said our goodbyes, promising to see each other again in two years.  It was a quiet time this year -- we all commented on the unusually cool weather as the breeze blew through the doors at either end of the parish hall.  As that breeze blew I could almost feel the spirits of those who were no longer with us, passing through that hall.