“There is a destiny that makes us brothers, None goes his way alone, All that we send into the lives of others, comes back onto our own.” (Edwin Markham)

I never had any brothers but I was blessed with five of the best male cousins any man could ever want. Allen McClintick, Tom McClintick, Bruce McClintick, Dan Croswell and Jack Croswell were more like brothers to me because we all shared a common ancestry with our Grandfather McClintick. To be one of only six men on earth who could say, “Yep, that’s my grandpa,” put us in an exclusive fraternity we all cherished with a passionate fervor, few can comprehend. We are closer than any other cousins I have ever known.

We all ended up in different parts of the country but the common ground of our place in Minnesota kept us close in spite of geography. We each made the journey to the property  and did our share of the work that was always plentiful. It’s called paying your respects and hard work was the only form of payment my Grandfather McClintick would have accepted from us. Every descendent of Guy R. McClintick was blessed with a name that equated with honesty, compassion, integrity and dedication. We all accepted the mantle of responsibility that came with this incredible inheritance.

Now that we’ve reached the latter stages of life and we face the end of days, I believe we will be closer than ever. We’ve already lost Dan Croswell and Tom McClintick but there are no regrets for any of us. We all did our part to make the world a better place and followed every rule our Grandfather McClintick taught us about dedication and faithfulness. That’s what it takes to call yourself a McClintick Grandson, an undying desire to make a difference every day until there are no more days. It was always the path less traveled but made easier by our Grandfather’s footsteps leading the way. His guidance fortified us for every difficulty and created a bond that will never be broken, even in death.

I love my cousins like brothers and I’m proud of who they are and what they have done with their lives. They raised good kids, loved their wives, worked hard, played harder and helped others wherever they went because to do any less would be unacceptable to any McClintick. Life is hard but living is easy when you have a family around you who shares the joys and sorrows that come every day. We’re close as a family because we work at it and we accept God’s plan for our lives, unequivocally. We don’t waste our precious gift of time by dwelling on what might have been but rather we focus on what still needs to be done and how to get there.

I’m looking forward to being reunited with my cousins in the next life and I just hope there’s plenty of work that needs to be done in Heaven. Our Grandfather has been there for decades so I’m sure he’s got many things planned to keep us happy for eternity. It will be great to be together once more, sharing the load with my Grandpa, my dad and my uncles. Heaven will never be same after all the McClintick men get there.

Even God will be amazed!

©Guy R. Horst and grhgraph.wordpress.com, 2015. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Guy R. Horst and grhgraph.wordpress.com with appropriate and specific direction to the original content