Cousin Barb's 50th

October 2012

In honor of my cousin Barbara Mendel's 50th birthday, her husband Bob asked friends to contribute stories or reminiscences. This was my contribution:

Hello, Sara Ellis here, writing to you from Maine. Those of you who know me have already heard this story ad nauseum. However, any collection of stories about Barb simply has to include this one. So here we go, back to the very beginning--which, as we all know, is a very good place to start!

You see, I am Barb’s cousin. I was born in December 1961 to two parents who had been quite surprised some nine months earlier to hear that there was another little one on the way. They already had three children ranging between 5 and 12 years old, and figured the days of diaper changes and night-feedings had long since passed. However, they grinned and bore me, and apparently never regretted it!

Soon after my birth, my Aunt Liz and Uncle Gerry went to the hospital to visit my proud parents, John and Betty. The story goes that, at the sight of my big blue eyes and curly blonde hair (photo, right), Liz turned to her husband and said “Aww, Gerry… let’s have another one.” And ten months later, out popped Barb!!

I am thankful that I was having a good hair day, on that fateful day in the hospital, because Liz and Gerry provided me with my oldest and dearest friend. Barb and I were pretty much inseparable growing up (photo below). Sleepovers, hide-and-seek, make believe, tag, board games, years of summer camp, swimming at the cottage, mogul hopping on family ski trips, and so on. But most importantly—laughter.

We could, and did, make each other laugh—often to the chagrin of parents who thought we actually ought to SLEEP during a sleepover. As we reached adulthood and each moved from Ottawa, the bond between us remained–and remains–strong. We can always pick up from wherever we left off, whether by phone or in person.

I certainly wish I could be with you all in person to toast this smart, beautiful, funny, and trusty friend of ours. Cheers to Barb!