Saturday was my husband’s annual cousin’s club. Every year in June, all of the relatives from my mother-in-law’s side of the family get together at our house. The cousins begin arriving at about 12:30 and each brings their own picnic lunch and beverages. We provide the location, pool, hopefully sunshine, and the bathrooms (a definite necessity).

Even though this was my tenth cousin’s club, I am still a relatively new member of the family. The length of time I have been in the family, however, is irrelevant. I found myself walking from table to table easily. At each table, I readily joined in  the conversation, whether it was relatives catching up with one another, reminiscing about events that occurred many many years ago, or just talking about current events. During each conversation there was always a lot of laughter, even when the reminiscing involved painful events.

To me, family is comforting. What is it to you?