Category Archives: Family

My cousin Ben is marrying his long-time girlfriend (Megan) this weekend at Ocean’s Edge in Brewster, MA on Cape Cod.  The location is spectacular and I’m looking forward to the reception later tonight. 

The grounds are really beautiful – so it is a shame the weather is not cooperating because I would have loved to walk alongside the ocean.   The back (or front of the resort as you drive in) is dominated by the main house (see below).

I spent part of the Labor Day weekend up in New Hampshire at my parent’s new house on Lake Winnipesaukee.  The weather was beautiful and the new home a tranquil location even with my newborn niece, Abby, and two nephews, Jack (5) and Austin (3). 

The only real drawback to the place is that it takes 2 – 2.5 hours and while the destination is worth the drive, it is hardly pretty getting there.  Construction on the house only just finished so next summer it will be interesting to see just how often we make it up to spend time outside of Boston and with family for quick get aways out of the city.

I have no regrets that I do not have children of my own in large part due to the fact that I get to play with and care for my two nephews (Jack and Austin) and now my first and only neice, Abby.

Nós vamos sentir saudades.

Yesterday, May 16th my sister, Elizabeth, gave birth to her third child, Abby Elizabeth Dion. Abby has two older brothers Jack (age 5) and Austin (nearly 3). Making my third visit to the Brigham and Women’s hospital to see mother, father (Travis) and baby was as exciting as it was the first two times I went to see Jack and Austin when they were born.

It will be exciting to see how the addition of a little girl to the family will change the family dynamics in the years to come. As the oldest of 4 children (one brother and two sisters), it is impossible for me to imagine not having little girls in the house growing up, and I’m glad I’ll be able to share that experience with my two nephews as they grow up. I’m also looking forward to having the opportunity to spoil the youngest and only daughter in the family. I’m now an uncle three times over and can not believe how exciting it is.

Today is my mother’s birthday and I wanted to recognize her. She is one of my absolute favorite people and a personal hero of mine; in addition to being a great Mom.

Once upon a time there was someone I knew who had a heart twice as large as most. This person saw the world and the people in his world as full of possibilities. Around this time in his life he met an intriguing partner who challenged and complimented him in ways that emboldened him and made his heart race faster than he ever dreamt possible.

However, over time he found that his heart was not compatible with his partner’s and because a heart needs love to give love their incompatibility caused both their hearts to shrink and finally harden. So sadly, when the “once upon a time” did not end in “happily ever after”, it became more than his heart could manage and it broke into many, many pieces. And what was once a world filled with possibilities became a world filled with impossibilities.

Over time, this heart has healed itself as hearts have been known to do. However, it is not that young heart that once raced freely. This heart is still on the mend and beats with a more fragile pulse; fearful of trusting itself and others. The world has changed yet again from one of impossibilities to one that is now filled with probabilities. His heart now protectively rations both his ability to give and receive love, baricading itself behind make believe walls that become very real and difficult to scale.

Fortunately a broken heart can heal and in time love again, but to do this a heart also has to be open to love when it shows itself. A heart needs to see the world in terms of possibilities not shades of probabilities. Only time will tell if this heart I am writing about will learn to trust itself and be willing to share itself without reservation. The ball is in his court now… let’s see what happens in the next chapter of this fairy tale. I’m doubling down on “happily ever after”.

This morning I received the following e-mail which I thought was a beautiful message so I wanted to post it here so I would be able to refer back to it from time to time.

There comes a point in your life when you realize who matters, who never did,
who won’t anymore, and who always will.
So, don’t worry about people from your past,
there’s a reason why they didn’t make it to your future.
Be kinder than necessary because everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle.