Earlier this week, I considered writing a rather negative article about school struggles or toxic people in one's life (those will likely be article topics in weeks to come) until I met my great-great aunt, Irene. I knew very little about my Aunt Irene before I met her this past Saturday. I knew that she was my maternal grandfather's only living aunt. I knew that she had just turned 90 years old this year. I knew that she sent my family a Christmas card every year, always inscribed with beautiful handwriting. I knew that on Saturday, after many years of residing in her Michigan home, Aunt Irene would be visiting my great aunt's house in Pennsylvania. Today, I had a chance to visit with my great-great aunt after a lifetime of not knowing her. For some reason, I thought that Aunt Irene would be a haggard, sickly, confused, elderly woman who grew up in the same town in Pennsylvania where all of my mother's elders grew up. This could not have been further from the truth. I entered my great aunt's house to be greeted by a woman that I thought to be around my grandfather's age, perhaps a bit older. Though she was clearly elderly, she was a picture of health, with seemingly no ailments whatsoever. The woman was very neat and well-kept; her hair snow white and elaborately coiffed. She wore a beautiful baby blue blouse, which matched her eyes perfectly. Her blouse and eyes were complimented by a purple beaded necklace and matching gem earrings. I imagined that in her younger days, she must have looked like an old Hollywood star, maybe Ingrid Bergman. I greeted this woman with a smile, and we walked to the kitchen together. We both took a seat at the kitchen table. She seemed to know who I was right away, even though I still was not sure who she was. The first thing she did upon sitting down was ask what I was studying in college. This was the first time I heard her speak. She had a remarkable German accent, and a voice that sounded bell-like and sweet. I replied, "English Secondary Education." The woman was delighted by this and said, "That's wonderful! If you are going to be an English teacher, you must study in England. I had a very good English teacher who studied at Oxford. She taught me everything I know." I was surprised that someone who was a stranger to me would start a conversation this way. Soon after this conversation began, some of my other relatives gathered around the kitchen table. One of my mother's cousins turned to the old woman and said, "You know Nancy, right?" "Oh yes," she replied, grinning. "Oh, by the way," the elegant old woman began, "I'm Aunt Irene." Absolutely floored by this, I thought, "How could this well-put together woman such a sharp memory be my 90 year old great-great aunt? How could she remember who I am after only seeing me one other time as a baby?" Intrigued, I listened to my Aunt Irene talk to my other family members as my mind raced, trying to understand how such a woman could be related to me. After talking with some of my other family members for a while, she turned to me and said, " English is very important. My first language was German, but I learned English in high school. I worked for the American government in Germany during World War II. I finally moved to America after the war in 1948. That's when I met your Baba's (great grandmother's) brother, my husband. I had to become more fluent in English in order to live in America and talk to my husband, of course." At this point, I was not only astonished, but also hardcore fan-girling in my mind. Being that I am a history nerd, and a huge fan of Marvel's Agent Carter, Aunt Irene's story was absolutely amazing to me. My first thought was, "OMG my great-great aunt was a German Peggy Carter." Aunt Irene told me that her mother would never visit her in America, and was not pleased that she decided to move to America either. Aunt Irene would visit her mother in Berlin on occasion, but continued to live in America despite her mother's disapproval. By telling me this, though she did not say this directly, she communicated to me that life is too short not to follow your dreams. Through her appearance, she also communicated to me that it is important to take care of yourself in order to live a long and healthy life. Because she encouraged me to travel to England, I could tell she believed that travel expands one's knowledge. Through her kind words and lack of complaints, she helped me realize that the key to perseverance is a positive attitude. Though I certainly did not learn all that I would have liked about my Aunt Irene, I was truly inspired by the person I found her to be. I am so proud to know that I am related to her, and hope to see her again in this life.