by Ren Huff

Created on: January 11, 2009

I remember as a child taking regular "family vacations" to Georgia and Tennessee. Why was it that most of my friends went on a family vacation once a year and we took at least three a year? We were far from wealthy.

I began seeing a pattern every time we went on a "family vacation." No matter what state we went to, we always met our relatives at a funeral home. As I got older I realized it wasn't the typical family vacation. Either we had a sick humor and enjoyed funeral homes or our vacations just happened to fall on a time when someone died.

This sure explains alot. Everyone was always crying during our vacation. Food was everywhere. It never stopped coming. There was always a man up preaching about death. What a strange vacation!

Although as a child I didn't fully understand what was going on, I did eventually figure out that the only time we gathered with our relatives was when someone died. I think that was more saddening than the funerals themselves. Family had become important only when we lost one. The value of family unity had been lost to a busy world.

Why is it that we wait until someone is gone before we realize how important they were to us? Why is it that we allow ourselves to get too busy to fellowship with our kin? What happened to family reunions gathering at the park and the children playing with their cousins while the adults share stories?

Well, deaths have slowed down. Therefore I haven't seen my relatives in years. I don't even know most of them anymore. Families have multiplied and scattered throughout the country. One of my neighbors could be a cousin and I not know.

Although I love my family, I do not care to see them any time soon. If I did then our next "family vacation" would be at a funeral home. My children would have to experience the ongoing tears from their relatives and the never-ending food supply. Play time with cousins would be in the family room where the food resides. But then, they would be meeting their relatives for the first time. They would have the opportunity to get to know others just like them.

I have to wonder when this cycle will end. At what point will this new generation get tired of meeting at funeral homes. When will they say, "This year the family reunion will be at my house. Bring your family and a lot of food. There is no dress code and all caskets will be left out of the reunion." I wonder how many would show up.

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