Memories

No, this is not a post about "CATS" or any other Broadway musical. It's not going to even be a deep post. It's going to be a post about one of my favorite memories. I encourage everyone else who reads this blog to do the same: post one of their favorite family memories.

In my film class today, we spoke about the importance of family stories and how they can and are the center of our lives. Most every story, or memory that we have involves some member of our family. Whether that be our mother, our father, our grandparents, brother, sister, aunt, uncle, whoever...

So, I've decided to post one of my favorite family memories.

My family can be a little nontraditional. I have a mom, a dad, and brothers and sisters, but sometimes...we do things differently. I guess that's how most families are. One of my favorite memories of my family was during Christmas. I can't remember what year it was. I think I was a Senior in High School, so that must have been 2005. For that Christmas, my parents decided that instead of buying all the presents and celebrating Christmas at home, we would pack our bags and head to Disneyland and celebrate Christmas there.

It was a wonderful experience. I can remember my mom, toting all of us along, racing to the front of the FastPass lines, just so we could get tickets. I remember my little brother, Alex, getting lost for about 1 minute (that freaked everyone out for a bit). I remember Erin and I pretending like we were Jack and Rose on the breast of the ship Titanic. I remember Jared crying his head off because he hated getting wet. I remember Jennifer, so excited to get drawing books and princess things at Disneyland. I remember my mother and my father, wrapping their arms around each other. I fondly remember the fireworks display. Even now, writing this, tears come to my eyes.

We were all there, as a family, watching the beautiful twinkling bits of fire fall from the sky, hearing Christmas carols and just being...a family. Then, the lights dimmed, and the song, "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" starting playing, and bubbles fell like gently falling snow around the park. I remember that entire crowd deathly silent and feeling the Spirit of love and unity and family. People call me strange for saying that Walt Disney was an inspired man of God, but he was. I know it. There is no way that that man was anything other than that.

My family and I then exited the park, quiet and hushed, just like all the other guests. We then went back to the Hotel and the next morning...it was Christmas, and what a beautiful Christmas it was.

So, there you have it. One of my favorite family memories. I hope there are more of those memories to come. It's harder now, since all the kids are growing up and getting older, but there can be memories equally as good or better as we grow and become a stronger family.

Love you all!!