Returning to “staying on message.”

In the delicate balance of managing seven billion prople, when people have individuality that shares traits of common culturres, happiness is social.

Over the weekend, my mother’s family told stories about events, selves and ideas.

We decompressed, getting out from under the shadow of self-protection that the bombardment of negative news reinforces.

Image/brand management gives way to tales and legends of family lore.

Trapping rabbits for spending money as a teenager.

Taking the family car out for a spin at age 14 to go “parking.”

Visiting relatives and reporting on hoarding behaviour.

Playing epic sessions of Rook.

Throwing footballs in the backyard.

Sending bottle rockets into the neighbours’ treetops.

Looking at old family photos from the 1920s.

Recalling words like ectomorph and endomorph.

Fixing broken/leaking objects at a cousin’s house.

“Cuz, what do you think of my yard? Great, huh?”

“Looks like your mowing deck is askew.”

“Yeah, I noticed that it started messing up a couple of mowings ago.”

Finding a cotter pin had slipped or broken off and rigging one from a paper binder to level the mower blade platform.

Spending days prepping food and cleaning the house in preparation for the family reunion.

Swimming in the clubhouse pool.

Saying goodbye.

Returning home.

Cleaning up.

Diving back in to our crosscultural lives, putting on our self-defense shields that consist of platitudes and gratitudes.

The message of seven billion working toward one goal continues…