Caught White-handed

Soggy send-offs keep this family smiling

Although most of my siblings live nearby, a few have ventured as far as three days travel away, so we hardly get to see one another. As we’re a large, close-knit family, this results in long, sad send-offs at the end of holidays.

I can’t say exactly when or where this particular tradition began, but when a family member leaves, the rest of us grab a tissue to wave farewell. Some of us pretend to cry by dabbing our eyes with the tissue—just to add humour to the moment—while others really are shedding a tear. In turn, those driving away stick their hand out of the car window, even in frigid Canadian winter weather, and wave in a similar fashion.

As always with our family, it eventually turned into a game. When it’s time to leave, we gradually separate into two groups—those who are staying and those who aren’t. Sneakily, one group spreads the word around, as well as tissues, to try and catch the other group off guard to see if they have forgotten our custom. Life can keep our minds busy as belongings are packed up and it’s so easy to forget something like that. Usually, we’re just trying not to leave our children behind!

Several times I only remembered to keep a tissue handy because I spotted a white tuft in someone else’s jacket pocket as they tried to shuffle the evidence out of sight. Once, when it was our turn to leave and Dad drove away, everyone outside frantically waved flashes of white in my direction. Unprepared, I had to rip the case off my pillow and wave it in reply—it being the only white material in sight. I was caught and everyone knew it!

We continue this tradition today and the newest generation is just as enthusiastic about it. We never fail to shock newcomers who are unaware of our tissue-waving send-offs. They look back in their rearview mirror and wonder what on earth we are all crying about. n