[originaltext] A few years ago, my husband and I moved from California to Wh

A few years ago, my husband and I moved from California to Whidbey Island, Washington, where we settled in and I began working at a local drugstore. One day a man came into the store to do some copying. After he left, another customer came in to use the same machine and found a paper the fast man had accidentally left behind. I inspected the paper to see if there was any information that would help identify the person who had left it.
    Upon reading it, I let out a yell that brought coworkers running. You see, on the paper was the family tree of my grandmother!
    Unfortunately, there was no information to help me locate the mystery man himself— who, I reasoned, must be a cousin of some sort. I was frustrated for myself, but felt especially sorry for him, as I know leaving papers behind is a genealogist’s nightmare. All I could do was wait and hope he returned.
    It took ten days for the man to come back to the store to do more copying. I wasn’t even sure it was the same person, but I approached, asked some questions that probably made him think I was psychic, and we made the connection. My great-grandmother and his grandmother were sisters, making us second cousins once removed. I was astonished as I had no idea that any part of my family had ever resided on Whidbey Island.
    My copier-cousin Frank introduced me to his wife and even invited me to spend the fourth of July together with his eight children and grandchildren. The rest of the country was celebrating independence, but I was celebrating my newfound family !