Family photos

The kitchen at my grandma’s house, then and now(ish)

Pearl G. Zinser died on August 5, 2017 at the age of 91. She was my last living grandparent and the only one for whose funeral I was an adult. The death of a family member hits differently when you’re an adult. Your responsibilities look different too.

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I was living and working in Seattle when my dad called me. He said she was in the hospital and that it wasn’t looking good. I said I would start looking for plane tickets.

I took a red eye to Cincinnati where my dad picked me up and drove me to the hospital. I was curled up asleep in the hospital room when my little brother showed up later that morning. My sister arrived later that evening.

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I stayed to help my dad with the funeral arrangements. He had moved into my grandma’s house after retiring, slowly fixing up the place. That week while I was at the house I scanned every photo I could get my hands on. My intention always was to share the digitized photos with my family. Five years later…

Zinser Family Photos on iCloud

This is just a drop in the bucket, but at least I’m finally getting started.