Reunion Season
From birth, our strongest bonds are to parents and to siblings. These ties grow to include the extended family. Consider the natural affinity between cousins. Or the connection between grandparents and grandchildren. (Helped, no doubt, by sharing a common enemy—the hard-working parents.) Ever had the joy of connecting with a long-lost relative, or discovering an ancestor who fought in the Revolutionary War? Maybe it’s in the DNA, but family ties transcend time.
Families are not static—they’re dynamic organisms, either growing or declining. I’m a keen observer of the process. This brings us to a question: Have you ever experienced a family reunion? It’s reunion season; the Beautiful Wife and I just survived one. Here’s what we learned.
Families, like humans, require essential nutrients. They thrive on love, but like watering a garden, it needs to reach the end of the row. Reunions do this—distant cousins and different generations renew the bonds of affection. At the end of our reunion, little Charley asked why his East Coast cousins, Stephen and Matthew, couldn’t live nearby.
Families share a sustaining culture. It may be a multi-generational faith—my 17th century Puritan ancestors seem near when I visit our Neighborhood Congregational Church. The Depression may have left a permanent frugal habit that protects later generations against other bad times. We have a card game we play at family gatherings. It’s not about the cards, or about winning, it just causes us to gather around a table and be together and share our lives as we take our turns.
Families are collective keepers of the flame. Life presents a stream of temptations—shiny objects of unknown consequence. The shared family wisdom vaccinates against such distractions. At our reunion, girls in their early teens pulled our college coed aside, wondering about love and kissing. We took a hike up the Narrows at Zion National Park. The canyon has timeless beauty but as it narrows and the walls rise higher, hikers must navigate the rushing stream. Three generations worked to ensure all safely returned. Not so different from everyday life.
The site of our reunions moves around. The BW is half-Swiss, so we once visited the mountainside village of Wengen, Switzerland, where her grandmother lived. I’d suggest that trip for anyone’s bucket list. Another time we went to Martha’s Vineyard. Amidst the local attractions, the children preferred to run on the lawn at dusk playing tag as the fireflies came out. Simple joys are often the purest. We tried a Laguna reunion, but it didn’t take the men far enough from their work. We’re looking for our next site.
The Siler family of North Carolina is reported to have the oldest tradition of an annual reunion—they started in 1853. The Porteau-Boileve family of France, dating to the 17th century, had the largest reunion with 4,514 attending, according to Guinness. Whatever the age or size of your extended family, consider holding a reunion. There’s meaning in that.
Skip fell in love with Laguna on a ‘50s surfing trip. He’s a student of Laguna history and the author of “Loving Laguna: A Local’s Guide to Laguna Beach.” Email: [email protected]
Places to worship (all on Sunday, unless noted):
Baha’i’s of Laguna Beach—contact [email protected] for events and meetings.
Calvary Chapel Seaside, 21540 Wesley Drive (Lang Park Community Center), 10:30 a.m.
Chabad Jewish Center, 30804 S. Coast Hwy, Fri. 7 p.m., Sat. 10:30 a.m., Sun. 8 a.m.
Church by the Sea, 468 Legion St., 9 & 10:45 a.m.
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 682 Park Ave., 10 a.m.
First Church of Christ, Scientist, 635 High Dr., 10 a.m.
ISKCON (Hare Krishna), 285 Legion St., 5 p.m., with 6:45 feast.
Jehovah’s Witnesses, 20912 Laguna Canyon Rd., 1:00 p.m.
Laguna Beach Net-Works, 286 St. Ann’s Dr., 10 a.m.
Laguna Presbyterian, 415 Forest Ave., 8:30 & 10 a.m.
Neighborhood Congregational Church (UCC), 340 St. Ann’s Drive, 10 a.m.
United Methodist Church, 21632 Wesley, 10 a.m.
St. Catherine of Siena (Catholic), 1042 Temple Terrace, 7:30, 9, 11, 1:30 p.m. (Spanish), 5:30 p.m. There are 8 a.m. masses on other days and Saturday 5:30 p.m. vigils.
St. Francis by the Sea (American Catholic), 430 Park, 9:30 a.m.
St. Mary’s Episcopal Church, 428 Park Ave., 9:30 a.m. (summer schedule)
Unitarian Universalist, 429 Cypress St., 10:30 a.m.
