East Texas

After packing our bags in New Orleans, Mom and I headed to East Texas. We both agreed it had been far to long since we'd been back. I love Texas. I love my family there. And I missed the hell out of them for the last ten years.

We stayed with Aunt Ellen for the week. I'd stayed with her in middle school and turning up her red dirt driveway in Pollok was such a joyous and nostalgic feeling. We were greeted with open arms and teary eyes. My parents actually named me after Aunt Ellen and I've always been proud of it. My Aunt Ellen is a white haired, colorful, beautiful force to be reckoned with.

Ellen and Abby Ellen.

On our first night, my cousins Belle and Olivia came by to visit. Despite the last time Belle and I saw each other being when we were middle schoolers, we managed to stay close online throughout the last ten years. We picked up right where we left off. I'm not going that long without seeing her or her sisters again. Love y'all.

My Grandad (mom's dad, Ellen's brother) joined us a few days later. More hugs and more tears were had, naturally.

Ellen and my Grandad operate on what my immediate family calls "Texas Time" and what my cousins refine to "Boggs Time" in which so much time is spent on telling stories and sharing memories and simply being together that everything else operates behind schedule. Dinner at 6? We won't be eating until 8.

It is fun to live on Texas Time for a week. Everything is slow. Everything is sweet. You can really savor it.

On Texas time we got to (literally) savor some really good food.

Ellen was able to get a whole crew of family members together for dinner at her favorite Tex Mex spot in Lufkin one night. The food was the delicious-- I spent A LOT of days all over Texas and I think I had Mexican food at least every other day, it was amazing-- and the company was even better.

The family!

Another day, Mom and Ellen joined forces to try and recreate some of her and Grandad's favorite dishes that their mom and grandmothers would make when they were growing up. We ate butter peas and boiled bacon, purple hull peas, hot water cornbread, Mamaw's spanish slaw, green stuff and squash. Some of it was familiar to me. Some of it was new. Seeing Grandad and Ellen's faces light up when they tasted everything from their childhood again was an amazing moment to be a part of. Plus, everything was delicious.

My plate of home-cooked goodness & a family photo at Ellen's.

Most of what we were savoring, though, were stories about Great Grandad and Granny. Everyone who shares a story about Orleans Henry Boggs does it with a twinkle in their eye. I imagine even my own stories are told that way, though I was so young when I knew him.

My fondest memories of Great Grandad were at the Moselely Place, his hunting land. Aunt Ellen asked what mom and I wanted to do on our visit and, aside from seeing her and the cousins, we only asked that we could go to the Moseley.

Great Grandad and I at the Moseley Place (2005).

It was special to go back. We couldn't get through the gate so Mom, Grandad and I hopped the fence and walked through the grasses and woods to get in. It was especially great to have Grandad there, because he knew the Moseley. What were distant and brief memories for me was a childhood filled with time and stories there for him.

A short drive away was the Renfro cemetery where, with Mom's ancestry knowledge, we were able to visit (many-generations-ago) family members' resting places.

The whole afternoon felt really special. Even the time spent in the car to and from the Moseley place was filled with stories. I knew Great Grandad was happy to see us back in his favorite place. As we drove away from the land I swear I could feel him in the back seat with his arms around Mom and I, smiling at his kids and they laughed and shared stories of him and the Moseley.

The same picture, 20 years apart.

I spent my last few nights in East Texas with my cousins in Nacogdoches. Belle, Audrey, Liv and I went to the beach to soak in some (very brief) sunshine. Later, we went out together, laughed, shared stories, played trivia. I also managed to find the best drunken noodles (Thai dish) I've ever had in small-town-East-Texas, which was an exciting surprise.

We spent the next day in Chester with the rest of the Gilzow family for the Dogwood Festival. The weather dampened some plans, but I still got to see some of it. There's genuinely nothing in my life up north that I could compare to the Dogwood Festival. It was a lot like a pageant celebrating Spring (pretty dresses, a queen was crowned) but it focused a lot on family roots in Tyler County. A lot. Like, everyone's family history was read out every time they crossed the stage. Honestly, it was pretty cool because I can't imagine another time in my life where I would experience something like it. My cousins might disagree.

It was fun to spend time with them and Gabe, Sandy and Rex. When I travelled on my own to Texas in middle school I always got to spend a few nights with them in addition to staying with Ellen. I'm almost positive Sandy made the same soup the last time I was there, and it was delicious and perfectly nostalgic both times.

Not much has changed among me and the girls... the whole time we were together we forgot to take good pictures so we resorted to bad selfies. Just like old times.

We also forgot to snap a picture before Belle fell asleep... whoops.

All in all, Mom and I loved being back in East Texas. We'd talked about it since the moment my trip became a reality. I always knew this stop was going to be on my route, and I'm so grateful that Momma and Grandad could join too. It's a favorite place for each of us.

Thank you Aunt Ellen, for having us. Thank you Belle, Audrey & Liv, for still being cool so many years later and meeting every ("low") expectation I had for our weekend. And thank you Great Grandad, for Texas Time, and the memories worth sharing with a big smile on our faces and a twinkle in our eye.