"How's the Family?"

It is a few minutes to air time for the first pilot of "How's the Family?"  Those of us who worked on it know the material inside out -- we've  dissected it and put it back together, edited things out and done retrakes-- and even though I've heard this final version a trillion times, I feel NERVOUS and.... excited.

Here at "How IS the Family?" at Gather  (they can't do an apostrophe in computerland, so perhaps we sound a bit more formal here....)  we'd like to engage in a discussion about what it is that YOU think is important about FAMILY.  How does FAMILY feel to you today? Who IS your family?  We think, of course,  of our families of origin, but we also think of the families that we make in the world.  We might be parents.  Or we might have found a group of friends that we think of as "our family." 

 There are step families, blended families, "broken" families (are there "fixed" families too???).

So bring us your stories.  Tell us a story about your mom.  Describe the family reunion you're planning.  Tell us about a crunchy, crabby  time you had yesterday, when you felt that you couldn't handle the title  "mom."

 I cleaned my porch this morning, thoroughly.  It is used as a storage area for most of the winter and spring.  Then I look for a day (like today) in which I can vacuum it, scrub it, toss out the stuff that's accumulated (old books, sweatshirts and pants we've outgrown  in bags), and transform it into a sweet, humble resting spot.  I washed the woodwork and the windowsills.  My friend Terre brought over flowers.  I placed them on a little table right next to the old red chair.  Now my family will have a place to relax at the end of the day, and a sweet little room to eat breakfast in this summer.

 "How's the Family?"  Well, from where I was sitting a few hours ago, "pretty good." 

 I have high hopes for good family time this spring... on the porch.