Southsea to eastleigh then Brighton

Yesterday I took the bus, from Southsea, first to go see the "Victory" Capt Nelson's ship..in Portsmouth harbour then to Eastleigh to meet our cousins, four of them with their spouses.

The ship was amazing and I was awestruck by it's size, the ingenuity it must have taken firstly to conceive then to produce. It's a wonder the ship could float under the weight of all the guns on board! Just a huge testament to the craftsmanship of the day and to the hundreds of man hours it would have taken to build.

It felt a bit Erie as one had to stop in some parts of the decks to get around, the population must have been a lot smaller then? Also around the surgeons area there was a feeling of dread for what must have happened to the men who lost their lives and limbs!!

From Wikipedia: "HMS Victory is a 104-gun first-rate ship of the line of the Royal Navy. She was ordered in 1758, laid down in 1759, and launched in 1765. With 245 years of service as of 2023, she is the world's oldest naval vessel still in commission."

On the bus again, I was met by cousin Jean and her husband Mike at Fareham to travel to Eastleigh in their car. We were to meet at David Mackie' s restaurant called "Steam Town Brewed".

It is hard to explain the myriad of feelings at being met by our first cousins for the first time! I immediately felt an emotional connection, after searching for them seriously for the last 30 years, it was so easy just to slip into family mode, all catering at once trying to tell and listen to family stories I so wanted to hear!

We talked about our Grannie who immigrated to Canada, about our Dad's, the brothers John and David Mackie, who had always wanted to meet and never did, the effect of the traumas we all faced in light of their trauma... We talked about our now families and such likenesses and similarities, characteristic traits...the dimples, blue eyes, brown eyes, the everyone talking at once and "over" each other, the creativity and busy ness!

We enjoyed good food and comfort with each other and said sad goodbyes as I went to catch the last train to Brighton.Read more