Reunions, Gatherings, Get-Togethers....

Well, we made it through another reunion! Every year I look so forward to seeing the people I got to chat with and get to know better from the year before and every year, I end up talking to someone else that I didn't know so well before and barely seeing the people from the year before! But I pat myself on the back for being able to float from family to family and know something about each family and the family lines that draw them in!

I've been going to reunions for years and years. My own family held reunions but weren't really good at it. My maternal grandfather's family would gather one evening at a local park and each family would sit at their table and eat their own food and then the old ones would sit and talk to their kin while us young ones would go off to play with the kids we knew and we never got to know the other family lines, kids, parents, foods... not really what a reunion is meant for if you ask me. And when my grandparents and their siblings started dying off, my aunts and uncles decided a reunion wasn't necessary. Wasn't necessary? I say just the opposite!

My friend's family reunion is where I have found the most satisfaction in attending a reunion. Their family reunion tree goes back 5-6 generations now. They know the family members that aren't here any more and they know their 4th and 5th generation cousins. They get together at least 2-3 times a year. They appoint a committee to be in charge of the family Christmas dinner and show and the full reunion in September.

For the reunion, they camp for 3 days at a specific campground. I have found this seems to be a key ingredient for a successful reunion. A specific location. They tried to change the location of this reunion one year and boy! did the murmuring begin! They quickly booked the old location for the next year. Now they face the challenge again.. the campground is closing on Sundays. The family has not as yet agreed on a new location and they don't want to shorten the reunion by a day but they don't want to pull their kids out of school for a day and go up a day earlier. What to do?

I have attended my friend's family gatherings for over 20 years. I know their family lines better than they do! I have the gift of being able to float among families and know each line and place each member and can draw lines back to the original 3 sisters and 1 sister-in-law. This reunion has had upwards of 300 people attending, although every year is different! The one drawback with this group is that they sometimes get too elaborate with their activity planning and don't leave enough time for sitting and visiting.. but if they don't plan the activities, they also tend to stay inside their own family campsites and don't visit each other. They all go down to the common pavillion for pot luck dinners and breakfasts, and the children attend the children's activities, but the older ones sit in family groups and don't intermingle well at times. I really feel it is a gift to be able to float among different groups and maintain conversations and count friends among all!

The king's family reunites every October at a state park near Atlanta. Several families rent cabins for the weekend while others rent campsites. For years, we all rushed through regular Friday activities so we could stuff the royal carriage full and drive for 3 hours. We never left on schedule and almost always arrived after 11:00 PM on Friday night. We were smart enough to eat at McDonald's on the way up but the kids were far from ready for bed once we arrived at the cabin. So we not only had to calm the royal kids down, we had to prepare our "nectar of the gods" dishes for the potluck feast the next day. These dishes of course have to be perfect as we are there to show off our culinary skills!! We arose early Saturday morning to complete our edible art forms and then rushed down to the pavillion to sit and eat and visit for an hour. Then those who had cabins went back to collapse and nap until we heard who's hosting the campfire Saturday night. It was uncomfortable when we found out there were two campfires! We stayed up way too late trying to make up visiting hours and then we got up early Sunday to clean the cabin and get out by 11:00 AM. Where is the peace? Where is the relaxation? Where is the renewal of energy? I just spent everything I had financially, emotionally, and energetically to rush up to, run around, and leave the park.

The Monarch and I decided to extend our stays longer than the weekend. We rent the cabin for 5 days and look forward to the peace and quiet of nature and the chance to leisurely hike and row boats and walk the river rocks! We have 2 nights of campfires and singing and hot dog roasting and s'mores eating and visiting! His royal mum & dad come up with us. We have time to hike around the different trails and we rent boats and paddle around the lake. Last year, we got caught in a metal rowboat in the middle of the lake in a lightning storm! YIKES! We paddled as fast as we could to shore and scrambled up on the rocks to wait it out so we could row home! One year the king and the young royals learned to fish! We give ourselves all day on Friday to make our award-winning dishes for the reunion potluck!

Speaking of food, it amazes me how long it takes for a new dish to be accepted! Have I already said that here? It took 4 years for my cabbage salad to catch on. It took 2-3 years for the king's chicken & dumplings to take hold! Now they're both eagerly awaited! Oh yeah! I always look forward to the countess cousin's Strawberry Trifle Cake! YUM! And the king always looks forward to his royal sister's homemade macaroni and cheese! That's one good thing about reunions that share food! Only the best foods usually show up!

This year, the reunion torch was passed on to the king and I. We'll be in charge of renting the pavillion, remembering to bring the paper goods, setting up and cleaning up the eating area... One thing we're going to try and change is the length of time people hang around the pavillion. We have it rented for 8 hours. We're lucky if we use it for 2. So we have some ideas... we'll see! It's scary, this torch holding. If we don't get it right the first time, it won't take long before everyone doesn't come and they'll all say the reunion died out when the Monarch and Queen took over. If we do get it right, hopefully everyone will go home and tell their families what a great time they had and that the others should come next year.. keep your eye on that goal! The changes can't be too big or too little or the reunion dies out. Oh the pressure..... !!

I must say, I'm getting pretty good at drawing the monarch's family lines.. I can definitely place the reunion regulars on the family tree! And I have added branches and leaves this year! In the end, reunions are time well spent if my royal progeny learn their family lines and enjoy being among the different coats of arms in the family! If they can float among clans and carry on conversations and place the people on this big, twisted, nutty, Southern family tree, we've reunited successfully!