Peer Response

Hayley, I really enjoyed this post in particular because I think that the examples you were giving about your family gatherings pretty much permiate everyones get-together experiences. At least thats how it is in my family. To be honest, I have not been to one family gathering of my own or any of my friend's or distant family's "parties" in which there is even a slight shread of formality. Acually, I take that back. During gatherings like Thanksgiving and things of that nature when a substantial amont of family members are in the same place, we usually assign random places for everyone to sit and are formal when it comes to the beginning prayer, but that's about it. I guess when you get to little formalites like that, it becomes more of an issue of tradition than it does a question of being formal.
I especially liked it when you posed the question that made us think about what we are truly celebrating whenever it comes to get togethers on a holiday. As I thought more and more about it, I think to some degree we are celebrating the actual holiday such as 4th of July, Labor Day, or even Christmas, but when we are at a family members house, I feel that we are more celebrating a chance to be together and like you said, stay in close touch with one another. I feel that we really are celebrating the actual holiday like Christmas when we attend a church service, or go watch the fireworks downtown on the fourth of July. But even so, just the fact that we are in each others company (at least to me anyway) whether or not we are all just in the same room watching a Notre Dame game after Thanksgiving, to me is very comforting simply because we are all in the same room together. I really enjoyed this post you made.
P.S. Thanks for commenting on my first reflection question a few weeks ago!

This blog was posted in accordance with my F121 class at Indiana University

September 23, 2007 11:35 PM