by Sally Matheny
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| Smushy Kisses at Family Reunions |
Is there cringing, wincing, and gnashing of teeth at just the thought of a family reunion? Perhaps you had an agonizing experience as a child. Some crinkled stranger planted smushy kisses on your cheek. Then, pulling you away from your mother, the stranger weaved you through a chattering sea of unfamiliar faces. Finally, she anchored in front of another foreign body and the torture began.
“This is your mother’s great aunt’s, second cousin, Bertha, who first married Joe Schmitt, who was a tire salesman, but then he died, and about ten years ago she married John Brown, who manufactures straight pins in Detroit and he just so happens to be your dad’s podiatrist's first cousin! How about that?”
Excruciating. But you’re an adult now and here are three crucial reasons why you need to attend your next family reunion.
Remember
When multiple generations gather, there will always be times of remembering special moments from the past. Births, school days, weddings, funerals. While certain memories will mean more to some than others will, this is your heritage.
Even if you’re attending your spouse’s family reunion, you can learn a great deal. Maybe listening to your mother-in-law’s childhood memories will give you a better understanding of why his family celebrates Christmas the way they do. What annoyed you in the past, you may perceive differently now.
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Too often, an unforgiving spirit
is a person's only legacy. |
Pausing to reflect on the past brings joy, knowledge, and healing. Perhaps the reason many people resist a family reunion is due to a past hurt.
Aunt Bertha said or did something she shouldn’t have five, ten, or fifty years ago and for whatever reason people chose to hold onto that strife rather than letting it go. Bitterness was chosen over forgiveness. Pain over joy. Too often, an unforgiving spirit is a person’s only legacy.
What healing might take place if you go to your next family reunion?
Record
If there’s emotional or physical healing in the family, record it! Everybody has a story. A family reunion is a wonderful time to record those stories. Make a scrapbook or journal. Better yet, make a video.
Are there any veterans willing to share their experiences? Those who survived a war can instill fresh perspectives on freedom.
Who survived an accident or a disease? A problem at work or their first day of high school? Survivors bring strength and hope to the family.
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| Survivors bring strength and hope to the family. |
Ask the older ones to recall interesting tidbits about the family’s ancestry.
Even recording opinions on current events will be an interesting piece of history for the next generation.
No family reunion will ever be the same. The dynamics change. People come and go, jobs vary, and events alter our lives.
So often, we never submerge past the friendly greetings. Families need to go deeper conveying their life experiences. They inspire us and we can encourage them to keep pressing onward. Everybody has a story that can affect others. You need to share your story.
Recount
If nothing else, family members need to recount God’s blessings to the next generation. How have you seen God working in your life and the lives of others?
Describe times when God answered your prayers, when he brought healing, and when your needs were met.
Share experiences where your faith was tested and God was glorified. Consider the value others could glean from lessons you learned through setbacks and poor decisions.
If you carve out time for your next family reunion, and share the love of Christ, what eternal rewards are possible? It is not within our power to fathom how God can use us. He is quite capable of making transformations we never thought possible.
…which he commanded our ancestors
to teach their children,
so the next generation would know them,
even the children yet to be born,
and they in turn would tell their children.
Then they would put their trust in God
and would not forget his deeds
but would keep his commands.
Psalm 78:5b-7 (NIV)
Is it time for a family reunion?
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| Live out your faith at the next family reunion! |
Reflect on what’s worth remembering, and what things are best left in the past.
Record family stories to share for generations to come. Recount God’s blessings and faithfulness.
It’s quite possible, family reunions will have a quirk or two. With a large gathering of imperfect humans, we’ll experience occasional flawed moments. For some, showing love to family is more difficult than it is to friends. God freely offers His assistance with that. He’s the master demonstrator of mind-boggling grace.
If you truly believe you’ll attend a perfect, glorious, and joyful heavenly reunion one day, then live it out at your next family reunion.
So, this past weekend I went to my 30th High School Reunion.
I KNOW.
Also, Hallmark and Lifetime Channels lied -- no grand romances begun, and no murders.
Here are some photos:
Included in that are both my high school graduation photo, as well as photo of me from fifth grade.
I KNOW.
It was fun seeing old friends again. Especially since the last time I saw many of them was at graduation from high school.
I am now at an intense level of nostalgia -- right now I'm listening to songs from the 70s. Which is before I graduated high school, yes, but was the soundtrack to my life for my first fourteen years.
Amazon Affiliate. If you click from here to Amazon and buy something, I receive a percentage of the purchase price.
© Elizabeth Burns of
A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy
I went to my high school reunion Saturday night.
Here is one of my BFF’s - Sharon. I met Sharon in my sophomore year. At the reunion, she found out that we did indeed go to the same middle school- Barton Junior High; which, Royal Oak tore down to build senior citizen apartments. I had to show her my picture in the Middle School yearbook someone brought, she did not believe me. It is a hindrance at times to be an invisible.
Now, Dondero is a middle school and all the kids go to high school at Kimball. Sharon and I remember the kid who crapped in the pool in gym class. They had to empty the pool and disinfect it. He was not at the reunion much to our dismay.
Charlie, Bill and Dan. I would never have made it through high school without Charlie’s friendship. Not that I can remember much of high school. Which makes it nice to go to a reunion to talk about high school memories I do not have.
Bill, Cheryl, Vic and Mark. All extremely successful as I knew they would be. Bill reminded me that it was me who gave Mr. Solis a hard time in Spanish class. Yes, Mr. Solis, the demented Spanish teacher who threw a tennis ball at you when he wanted you to answer a question. Only, I refused to catch the dang thing, it was so demeaning. I got an A 4 that year. The principal called my parents into the office and explained that I was the first student he’d ever had to get one of the highest grades but the worst classroom behavior marking. He recommended I switch to another foreign language. Adios, Senor Solis. Bonjour, Mrs. Sauer.
Yes, I danced too.
Gail
Sharon & yours truly
Robin & Dan
Bill, looking great as ever
Julie
Thanks to Vic and Mindy for all their hard work planning the reunion.
What did I do in high school? I got good grades so I could get into a good college and I did. I was accepted to both University of Michigan and Kalamazoo College. I was in drama club until I got too involved in unregulated weekend activities. I was a behind the scenes Thespian. I wanted to play softball and volleyball but didn’t have the guts to see if I could make the team. I should have. I did not do any ‘writing’ clubs or the yearbook but all my English teachers loved me and I was invited to take the AP English exam even though I’d not had any “formal training” to do so. I got a 4, pretty good, huh? I remember being the only sophomore in an upper class American literature class. And, I remember my good friends- Sharon, Charlie, Bill, Cheryl, Vicky, Andrea, Lisa, Julie and my husband-to-be Bob (from another highschool); hence, the unregulated weekend activities.
Class of 2k8 members love Web sites!
Here's few more thoughts on the subject:
Web sites provide author bios.
My favorite part of any author’s site is the Bio page. What can I say? I love checking out the wizard behind the curtain! After checking out the author, I always click over to the frequently asked questions. Not only are they usually very interesting and informative, but because I’m a debut author I need to prepare myself for what kind of questions I may one day be frequently asked.
And since no one has ever frequently asked me anything—except maybe if they could have my book for free—I decided to *steal* some FAQ’s from some of my favorite authors and answer them as best I could on my own site.
~Brooke Taylor, Author of Undone,
http://http://www.brooketaylorbooks.com/
A Web site is a fantastic marketing tool.
People will tell you it's an essential marketing tool these days, but I think its most important role is giving readers a more personal glimpse of the writer, a sense of the personality behind the book… and that can deepen and enrich your understanding of her work, as well as forge a feeling of connectedness between author and reader—and connecting with readers is what writing is all about.
~ Elizabeth C. Bunce, Author of A Curse Dark As Gold,
http://www.elizabethcbunce.com
A Web site adds professionalism.
I have a Web site because I love the idea of having a Web site. But more than that, it makes me feel the part of being a writer. For the past fifteen years, I've designed chips (the kind that go in computers, not in your mouth), so when I started writing, there was a certain part of me which felt like a poser. Like I was pretending to be something I wasn't. And even now, with my first book coming out later this year, it's still kind of hard to identify myself as a writer.
So what does my site do for me? It makes me feel professional. It gives me the opportunity to present myself in a positive way. And it makes others view me as a positive and professional author. Writing is fun; I love it and want to do it forever. It is more than a hobby, and I want anyone who visits my site to see that and understand.
P.J. Hoover, Author of The Forgotten Worlds Book 1: The Emerald Tablet,
http://www.pjhoover.com/
A Web site can be jam-packed with activities.
A Web site is a really good way for me to showcase my books, introduce readers to me, and to pass information on to school librarians about what happens when I come to a school to visit. I also use the site to put up teacher packs, i.e. information, games, coloring pages, mazes, extra websites, writing assignments, that teachers can use with my books either before or after I come, helping to build upon the information I present when I am there.
~Stacy Nyikos, Author of Dragon Wishes,
http://www.stacyanyikos.com
Web sites satisfy curiosity.
I think a Web site gives readers a place to get to know you, learn more about your books and your plans, and maybe try something new.
~Regina Scott, Author of La Petite Four,
http://lapetitefour.com
A Web site is the place to be.
To a writer, a Web site is very important. The Internet is where we all go now...and having a pleasant, interesting presence there can help a writer attract and keep readers.
~Marissa Doyle, Author of Bewitching Season,
http://www.marissadoyle.com/
This episode is part our Publishers’ Showcase, a special series of interviews with children’s book publishers, which we’re running during the weeks of July 2 and July 9 2007.
Did you know that sharks are shy? That squid can be any colour of the rainbow and light up like fireflies? How old were you when you learned these facts and how did you learn them?
Mark speaks with Stacy Nyikos, author and President of Stonehorse Publishing, about her company’s mandate to publish books about the world’s most exotic animals and wildlife. You can learn more about Stonehorse Publishing by visiting their website, stonehorsepublishing.com.
Tags:
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Stonehorse Publishingchildrens books,
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Stacy Nyikos,
Stonehorse Publishing
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Interesting list! I love looking at websites and often go directly to the bio.
Teri
Okay. I am feeling really bad reading all this great reasons for having a website because.....I don't have one yet. But I will!!!
Get thee to a web designer, Miss Barrie. You will soon be a famous author!