Lenny is the cousin nearest in age to me. 

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His father was my mother's older brother, Dick.

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Dick and Marie had eight children, all boys except the second last one. They lived in a house that backed on the 57 Cleveland Ave, and there was a connecting gate between them. Visits to grandma's nearly always involved getting together with the Maes boys, as we called them.

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Lenny and I were particularly close, childhood sweethearts, really. He reminded me of that by giving me a cigar band ring, something he had done when we were about 9 and 10, solemnly placing it on my wedding ring finger.

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I had seen Lenny only briefly in 2008, so the 2013 visit was the first time we had together since 1974. It was such a gift to still feel so close.

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When I saw him in December 2019, he gave me such a tight hug, I'm surprised my ribs didn't crack!

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Love you, cousin.