The Elison family reunion this weekend was a great success. Amy and Phil came bringing their charming kidlings along with them. Tiana and Ryan brought baby Quin to meet much of the family for the first time. Cousins flew in from far-off states and people we haven't seen in years came out of the woodwork for the event. We all had a great time. 
The theme was "The Apple Doesn't Fall Far from the Tree." Amy designed a large apple tree with branches representing the branches of the family. Individual names were written on the apples and arranged in family groups. It was a very cute idea. All the kids got to run like mad through the stake center and play with each other. I met people John is related to that I hadn't met before, and got to see quite a few that I hadn't seen since my wedding.
I had a couple of long moments of Other. John's family is wonderful to me and always has been. They have gone out of their way to include me and I really love them. However, I just never quite belong. I come from a totally different planet than these lovely people. I was really struggling with feeling out of place the first few days, and Amy and Phil were very helpful with that. When we cut out and labeled the apples, I sat thinking that maybe I shouldn't be an apple. I had this image of a lone pineapple sitting on the branch next to John. Different shape, different color, different part of the world. We put my name on an apple anyway, but I felt foreign just the same.
Amy coordinated the whole reunion this year, passing it off to her cousin Sharon for 2011. Amy spoke with tears in her eyes when she described what it had been like to plan this event. She said that the spirit of Elijah had been in her house for a year. Elijah, the Tishbite. Elijah, the prophet. Malachi 4:6 said that Elijah would "turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers." To Amy, this is what Elijah could do. Elijah, the uniter of families.
As a Pagan, the name Elijah doesn't ring this way for me. When I think of Elijah, I think of 1 Kings 18:40: "And Elijah said unto them, Take the prophets of Baal; let not one of them escape. And they took them: and Elijah brought them down to the brook Kishon, and slew them there." Elijah had the priests of Baal and the prophets of Asherah put to death for no other reason than they dared to worship their own gods in their own land. Elijah, the murderer. Elijah, the zealot.
I cannot escape my fundamental differences here. I can only seek common ground and love my in-laws. I can only make sense of history and interfaith one moment at a time and enjoy the complexity of the culture into which I've married.
I drew a tarot card on the day of the reunion dinner. I pulled the Apple Branch, one of the fey gift cards in the deck. A gift. The fruit of the Garden, cut it crosswise and it's the fruit of the Goddess. I watched our nieces and nephews eat apples and reach out to one another. I saw my name hanging on the tree.
It is beautiful to be part of this family. It is more than enough.
The theme was "The Apple Doesn't Fall Far from the Tree." Amy designed a large apple tree with branches representing the branches of the family. Individual names were written on the apples and arranged in family groups. It was a very cute idea. All the kids got to run like mad through the stake center and play with each other. I met people John is related to that I hadn't met before, and got to see quite a few that I hadn't seen since my wedding.
I had a couple of long moments of Other. John's family is wonderful to me and always has been. They have gone out of their way to include me and I really love them. However, I just never quite belong. I come from a totally different planet than these lovely people. I was really struggling with feeling out of place the first few days, and Amy and Phil were very helpful with that. When we cut out and labeled the apples, I sat thinking that maybe I shouldn't be an apple. I had this image of a lone pineapple sitting on the branch next to John. Different shape, different color, different part of the world. We put my name on an apple anyway, but I felt foreign just the same.
Amy coordinated the whole reunion this year, passing it off to her cousin Sharon for 2011. Amy spoke with tears in her eyes when she described what it had been like to plan this event. She said that the spirit of Elijah had been in her house for a year. Elijah, the Tishbite. Elijah, the prophet. Malachi 4:6 said that Elijah would "turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers." To Amy, this is what Elijah could do. Elijah, the uniter of families.
As a Pagan, the name Elijah doesn't ring this way for me. When I think of Elijah, I think of 1 Kings 18:40: "And Elijah said unto them, Take the prophets of Baal; let not one of them escape. And they took them: and Elijah brought them down to the brook Kishon, and slew them there." Elijah had the priests of Baal and the prophets of Asherah put to death for no other reason than they dared to worship their own gods in their own land. Elijah, the murderer. Elijah, the zealot.
I cannot escape my fundamental differences here. I can only seek common ground and love my in-laws. I can only make sense of history and interfaith one moment at a time and enjoy the complexity of the culture into which I've married.
I drew a tarot card on the day of the reunion dinner. I pulled the Apple Branch, one of the fey gift cards in the deck. A gift. The fruit of the Garden, cut it crosswise and it's the fruit of the Goddess. I watched our nieces and nephews eat apples and reach out to one another. I saw my name hanging on the tree.
It is beautiful to be part of this family. It is more than enough.
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