Colm Buchanan was the first great grandchild of Silas and Grace Brennan.
He was born in 1903 in Western Australia
to Constance and Kevin Buchanan.

Colm's life long dream was to be a pilot.
As soon as he was old enough,
he moved to Queensland to train.
There, in 1920,  AFC pilots, Paul McGuiness and Hudson Fysch
has established the Queensland and Northern Territory Aerial Service (QANTAS).
By 1922, a sceduled mail service operated between Charleville and Cloncurry.
Operations then moved to Longbeach.
By 1927, the serice extended to Camooweal and Noraton.
In 1929, the Headquarters moved to Brisbane.

He married aviatrice Doreen Thompson in 1927.
They had 2 children:
Colin b. 1928
Rose b. 1931

Irene Casey was born in Taumarumui, New Zealand in 1890.
She was the first generation new Zealander,
born to Irish Catholic immigrants.
Irene's parents did not keep good health
and she dedicated much of her young adulthood
to their care and well-being.
After their deaths,
Irene opened a small dairy/general store
to cater for the needs of the growing population,
the railway workers, and those using the trains to travel.

She met Rewi Brennan, a train driver in 1919.
They married in 1920
and had 3 children:
Veronica b. 1922
Lawrence b. 1924
Vincent b. 1925.

Rewi Brennan was born in 1893 in Rotorua.
He was the youngest child of Kennedy and Aroha Brennan.
Rewi was fascinated with trains and railways.
The Rotorua line was initiated in 1894.
As he grew, Rewi would spend every moment he could down at the station.
He gained an apprenticeship to the railways,
and eventually became a locomotive driver.
Rewi transferred to Taumarunui.

Taumarunui gained importance with the completion
of the North Island Main Trunk line in 1908-09 .
The line south of Taumarunui caused considerable problems due to the terrain,
and has several high viaducts and the famous Raurimu Spiral.
The Stratford - Okahukura Line to Stratford connected just north of Taumarunui.

Rewi met Irene Casey, a shop owner, in Taumarunui.
They married in 1920
and had 3 children:
Veronica b. 1922
Lawrence b. 1924
Vincent b. 1925.

Roimata Brennan was born in 1891 in Rotorua, New Zealand.
She is the 5th descendent of Silas and Grace Brennan
to become a priest or religious sister.
Roimata had long been interested in Maori herbal medicine,
and was intrigued by Suzanne Aubert's herbal remedies.
Suzanne Aubert was a French nun who founded the Daughters of Our Lady of Compassion,
New Zealand's only indigenous religious order.
Roimata had also heard about Suzanne's work amongst the Maori,
who she knew were severely disadvantaged by European colonisation.

Roimata travelled to Wellington to work at the Home of Compassion
which was opened in Island Bay, Wellington, in 1907.
She joined the Daughters of Our Lady of Compassion
and cared for babies and children,
as well as working in soup kitchens.

 Elwyn Pemberley was the only son of Lord Leopold and Lady Augusta Pemberley.
He was born in 1870, in Devon.
He inherited his father's title and estate on his father's death.
Lord Elwyn was a quiet but learned man,
enjoying music and literature and anthropology.
He took every opportunity to experience different cultures
and often took Grand Tours.

Matt Gross, in "Lessons From the Frugal Grand Tour." New York Times 5 September 2008.
described a Grand Tour thus,
"Three hundred years ago,
wealthy young Englishmen began taking a post-Oxbridge trek through France and Italy
in search of art, culture and the roots of Western civilization.
With nearly unlimited funds, aristocratic connections and months (or years) to roam,
they commissioned paintings,
perfected their language skills
and mingled with the upper crust of the Continent."

He met Marama Smith at a Maori Concert.
They married in 1920
and had 2 children:
Victoria b. 1921
Albert b. 1924.

Lord Elwyn died in 1925.

Mmmmmm....
The enigmatic John Smith.
Little is known of this man.
It was thought he might be English or Welsh but no-one knew.
He captured the heart of the young Marama Brennan.
They married in 1908 but he deserted her shortly after.
He was never seen or heard of again.

Marama Brennan was born in 1890 in Rotorua.
She inherited her mother's beauty and her father's pale skin.
Marama's first love was Maori culture, especially song, dance and poi.
As soon as she was able she joined a Maori Concert party,
and entertained the growing number of overseas' tourists.
Marama persuaded her father to have regular concerts at his hotel.

At 17, Marama came under the spell of the enigmatic John Smith.
They were married in 1908.
Two years later, John mysteriously disappeared, never to be seen or heard of again.
Marama petitioned for divorce.

Her concert party travelled to England to perform to the aristocracy and nobility.
Once again her heart was stolen,
this time by the charming, but much older, Lord Elwyn Pemberley.
They married in 1920
and had 2 children:
Victoria b. 1921
Albert b. 1924.

Lord Elwyn died in 1925.
Marama was to administer the estate until Albert was 18 years old.
Unfortunately, Albert died in Norway during World War 2.
Instead, the inheritance passed to the next male relative, a remote second cousin.
Marama received a yearly allowance.

Cecila de Luca was born in Florence, Italy, in 1889.
From an early age, she was known to have a rare musical talent.
Her parents arranged specialised tutors to develop her soprano voice.
Eventually, she joined the Gonsalez Italian Grand Opera Company,
which toured New Zealand.

Opera was welcomed into New Zealand from 1862.
The first opera was performed in Dunedin.
Most years between 1870 and 1880 saw an opera visit New Zealand.

Cecilia was wooed by opera fanatic Silas Brennan.
He followed her to Italy,
where they were married in 1920.
They had 1 child:
Lucia b. 1925

Silas Brennan was born in 1889 to Kennedy and Aroha Brennan.
He was named for his paternal grandfather, Silas.
Silas was a bit of a lothario,
gaining an unsavoury reputation wherever he went.
When not visiting major cities to attend concerts and theatre and opera,
Silas worked in his parent's hotel.
He was a real asset as he wooed and charmed the guests!

After a performance by the Gonsalez Italian Grand Opera Company,
Silas met soprano Cecilia de Luca.
They fell in love.
Silas emigrated to Italy where they married in 1920.
They had 1 child:
Lucia b. 1925

Death is an intrinsic part of life.
Facing and accepting our mortality helps us become fully human.
I have found it keeps me grounded:
living attentively in the present moment;
daily acknowledging what is important;
developing an attitude of gratefulness;
becoming detached from possessions and concepts which bind;
focusing on relationships;
practicing empathy and compassion;
freeing me to live mindfully.

Often this seems counter-cultural in a world
determined to stay young;
where youth is lauded and age is hidden away in care facilities;
where funerals are a commercial enterprise,
preying on the fears of those afraid to confront death;
where hair dyes and night creams are sandbags at the threshold of old age.

Lives are treated as a commodity -
collateral damage in war zones and environmental disasters;
slaves and child labourers to satisfy the greed of others;
guinea pigs in the pharmaceutical industry;

As I create the members of the extended Brennan clan,
death was an inevitable guest.
Old age, sickness and epidemic, childbirth,
maltreatment, suicide, accident, war.

Family members reacted in different ways.
Some chose flight -
they ran from memories and grief.
Some started afresh -
new location, new jobs, new partners.
Some let questions and anger overwhelm them
and stunt their own growth as human beings.

How do I react when I meet death face-to-face?
Am I open to the healing of tears and grief,
or do I want to numb the pain of loss?
Do I have a grateful heart and outlook?
Do I let the dead overshadow the lives of the living -
or do I invite them to enable and empower the living through their stories?