August 2020 – Through The Byzantine Gate

Midsummer Greetings to family, friends and WordPress Subscribers. This posting provides some updates on the Serrapede and Muro families. Photos from Uncle Sammy, Michael Muro and myself are included.

I went back to work in early June. I am so happy to have my employers and co-workers back in my life. I’m looking forward to business picking up in the fall when our busy season begins. I work in the HQ of a manufacturer of food colors and flavorings.

I am staying local in all activities as much as possible. I take long walks as a way to achieve FLOW, a state of consciousness anchored in the present with full focus on what one is doing at that moment. Some of my favorite ways to achieve FLOW is taking a walk along the route of a brook that threads through Linden, seeking out the many pretty gardens on the side streets where I live or listening for the flocks of Cardinals and Blue Jays in my area. I also am decorating my bedroom. A custom furniture maker repaired the display cases for the dolls my Mom left me. He also custom made a shelf for the display cases. As happens once one or two pieces of furniture are moved, the rest of the room also requires consideration. I’m in the process of deciding which bookcases stay in the living room and which get moved to my bedroom.

Uncle Sammy and Aunt Kathie went on a short vacation at the end of June. One of their stops was Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah. Uncle Sammy also heard from Michael Muro. He is well as is the other Muro family members who live nearby.

Research and preparation of future postings continues to progress very well. Uncle Sammy and I continue our weekly review and discussions. Publication of the Muro and Serrapede family history will resume after Labor Day. We will pick-up with the continuation of my Mom’s teenage years during WWII.

Congratulations to Kevin John Serrapede, a relative I have connected with at Ancestry and a long-time subscriber to Through the Byzantine Gate. Kevin’s relationship to me is described at Ancestry as “2nd great nephew of wife of 3rd great uncle”. We are related through my Grandpa Sam’s family in simpler terms. I can never get through all the technical descriptions and don’t keep them in mind at such a detailed level. What is important to me is making the contact and the collaboration which helps us grow our knowledge about our shared heritage and family connections.

Kevin and his wife were scheduled to take their first trip to Italy just as COVID-19 stay-at-home orders were implemented across the U.S. They made the wise decision to stay stateside. Their first granddaughter, Liana Serrapede, was born July 1, 2020. Congratulations and best wishes to the entire family.

Love to all,

EmilyAnn Frances May

Uncle Sammy and Aunt Kathie, Bryce Canyon, June 29, 2020