The Family Reunion (Childhood Memories)

We looked forward to it all year long. When I had a hard time going to sleep my older sisters' would remind me to think about it. I don't know if this helped because all I could think about was that I hoped it would come soon. Before the reunion was hardest. Was rain in the forecast? Perhaps it would be canceled. "..it will be no fun sitting out in the rain, " my dad chided.

I didn't care if it snowed as long as we made it there. It was a long drive but well worth it. 

"The water is cold (in the pool) !,"we were warned. It didn't matter. The whole experience was something that couldn't be matched elsewhere. 

We looked forward to seeing our cousins, aunts, and uncles. We drank in the sights, sounds, and conversation and recreated them over and over in our minds until the reunion rolled around again the following year adding to our memories of this wonderful experience.

Christmas: Children, It's not about the presents.(Right!)

As a child when I had a hard time going to sleep my older sisters would tell me think of something good. That something was most likely to be Christmas, our once a year family reunion, or Crystal Beach (more about the latter two later). No matter how many times I was reminded that Christmas was about giving and about the birth of Jesus it's hard for a child to think of anything more wonderful than the surprises of Christmas morning.

We rehersed our performance throughout the year. Who was going to assure that we were up on time? We certainly couldn't depend on our parents or the older siblings for this important task. We practiced sliding down the bannister very quietly. An efficient technique was of utmost importance. If my parents heard us on the stairs and yelled that it was too early, 'Go back to bed!' we measured the displeasure in their voice. Once we had made it down the stairs and into the front room we were home free. There was no stopping us now and my parents reluctantly relented that another Christmas morning had officially begun.

It wasn't so much about how much we received but the fact that we were sufficiently surprised that mattered most. When writing our 'dear santa' letters we always were reminded by older siblings to add that request in case the items we had requested weren't available. We were also given the evil eye if our requests were deemed excessive and reminded about the evils of greediness by our 'been there,done that' older sibs.

And so, although I think it is important to remind our children of the true meaning of Christmas I don't fault them nor do I think their excitement and concern with things other than spiritual are harmful or should be discouraged. It is with maturity, age, and intention that we gain a deeper perspective of what the holiday represents and are capable of appreciating this understanding as well as accepting where our children and others are in their spiritual journey.