Monday, August 04, 2008

Family Reunion












For my recent vacation, I went to a family reunion in Utah. I guess you could say I actually attended three. Every year my brothers, sisters, and I go to my parents house and visit for the week. We time it around the reunion for the decendants of my grandparents, and if we are lucky, it coincides with the reunion for my great grandparents. I've been going to this same little town almost every summer for as long as I've been alive. This is where my roots are, and it is one of the places that I call home. It's not, however, a cushy vacation. But we enjoy our visit so much that we are willing to put up with the inconveniences. Let me name a few:

--We had over 30 people at the house at one time
--17 of those were children and teenagers
--All of those people have to share 1 1/2 baths (try getting that many people showered for church on Sunday)
--We feed that many people 3 times a day.
--We wash clothes and towels as needed.
--The house is about 1100-1200 square feet
--Did I mention there are only 2 toilets?
--At night there are wall to wall bodies on the floor sleeping
--Outside the lawn is strewn with the tents of those who don't fit in the house.
--There were approximately 50 mosquitos for every person.
--It rained some of the time, and some tents and sleeping bags got wet
--Did I mention there are only 2 toilets?
--All of those people have luggage, but not all of the luggage makes it out to the tents
--Some of us drive 800-900 miles to get there
--There are only two bedrooms...and two beds. There are some pullout couches, but usually there is only enough room for one to be pulled out at a time.
--Did I mention there are only two toilets?
--The town is 15 miles from the closest grocery store, and the prices there are high.
--I did mention the toilets, but I won't mention the troubles we have with them.
--If you get up from your seat in the living room, you should expect to not have a place to sit when you come back. You move it, you lose it.
--You have to use bug spray several times a day.

With all of the inconveniences, there are some conveniences:
--We eat on paper plates and use plastic cups to minimize dishes
--The brothers and sisters take turns cooking, so we eat well
--Usually one of the siblings brings an air conditioner to put in the living room. (my parents don't use one normally)
--We love being together as a family
--We get to see some of the most spectacular scenery on Earth from our own front porch.

So even though there are inconveniences, we will continue to go back every year as long as we are able. Others may not see what we siblings get out of it, but we just enjoy being together.

2 comments:

Nene said...

Great picture! That's the best one I've seen yet! Is it posted on the family website? And by the way, the a/c I brought I just gave to mom and dad because the one Lloyd brought wasn't working as well.

Lindsay Logic said...

Siblings have a special bond that can't be duplicated. My siblings are some of my best friends.

*L*