How to Connect With Estranged Relatives

Nostalgia always seems to hit at holiday time. You find yourself looking at pictures of past holiday celebrations and wondering whatever happened to Aunt What's-her-name. If you ask your mother, she'll give you the history of a three-generation feud that reignited right after that picture was taken. Forget the feud. The holidays are a great time to connect with relatives you haven't seen in a while.

Instructions

1. Send a card or letter. Holiday greetings are always appreciated. Include updated information about you and other members of your family, a picture of the kids, and your current contact information. Your estranged relatives may reply in kind, and before you know it, you'll be building a new relationship.

2. Attend a family party. Make this the year you make the effort to attend the annual family holiday get-together. Put aside your old excuses, slap on a smile and show up. Asserting yourself in family gatherings gives you the opportunity to connect with your relatives.

3. Include them on your holiday guest list. What's one more plate on the table, after all. Extend a dinner invitation to a relative you haven't seen in a while. Since you're already entertaining, it's no trouble to accommodate one more guest.

4. Forget unpleasant pasts. Reconnect on a positive note. Don't ask yourself or anyone else why you stopped talking to these relatives in the first place. Think of this as a do-over. If you need closure on past issues, save it until the relationship is well established again, and even then, tread lightly on old wounds.