I always look forward to Wednesday nights. Since my nervous breakdown at camp and my subsequence return to Chico, I have been joining Susan and her family for dinner most Wednesday nights. Pretty much without fail, that’s where you will find me. Susan and Michael don’t ask much for your company. Just turn off your cell phone and enjoy the company that is in front of you. He came up with a saying, “All the people you want to talk to are right here.” That couldn’t be more true. On most Wednesdays, I either leave my cell phone in my car or I turn it off. If you read one of my earlier postings about cell phones you know this a difficult task for me. But on Wednesday nights, it’s a no-brainer because it’s true–everyone I want to talk to is right there.
Susan’s family is a mainstay for each dinner. However, we get drifters in and out each week. We might have some of their friends or the kids’ friends having dinner with us. I enjoy meeting all their friends and sharing a quality evening sans television or really any other stimulation other than the people there. Susan and Michael are always gracious hosts providing a wonderful meal and wine a plenty.
Over the year, we have assumed roles for the dinner. We are no longer guests, but part of the family. We are expected to help set up the dinner table or clean up. It’s fine. It’s part of the community that has been built. With the role of the family you are open target for harrassment and ridicule for the stupid things you say or do.
It’s always fun to see when the kids bring a new boy or girlfriend home. That’s open season to grill them and see what they can handle. I don’t recall anyone we sent home crying… yet. But it’s part of the rite of passage for them. I brought my girlfriend up last summer for the test. She passed. However, she didn’t pass some of the other tests.
Tonight, Suzette made an observation that the kids will carry these nights on for the rest of their lives. This got me thinking that indeed this is one of the big memories for them and for me. I just hope that they are able to see what value of family Susan and Michael are trying to instill in them so that when they have their own families, they will do the same. I know that I will when my children finally come around.
