Dinner Guest #47 - The W. Family

Sunday, December 2, 2012

Some friends cross your path on a weekly basis and yet you rarely get a chance to sit down and talk.  This Sunday, I felt lucky that the W. Family was available to come to dinner.  These are busy people:  two working parents and two busy teenagers participating in all kinds of activities. 

We have known the W. family for several years as they attend the same church as we do and Ryan spent some time as their “Home Teacher.”  However, we learned some new, interesting details about them during dinner.  Mr. and Mrs. W. have known each other since high school.  They dated during their teens and married in their twenties.  I am always amazed to meet couples who have known each other since childhood.  What’s it like to go to Senior Prom with your future spouse instead of Lenny, the pimply-faced teenager you sit next to in Algebra class?

Mr. and Mrs. W. understand the challenging life of a small business owner.  For several years, they owned an organic pet food store in town.  I admit to being a bit jealous that they have sold the business and moved onto greener pastures. 

Mrs. W. has amazing stories involving her current job as a court appointed social worker.  I sat at the table with my eyes bugged out hearing about the foster care system, parents losing custody of their children, rehabilitating drug addicted parents, and homelessness.  I silently thought to myself,

“Ok, my life’s not so bad…”

I served one of my old stand-by Sunday dishes:  Heavenly Chicken over Brazilian Rice, parmesan rolls, grapes, and a green salad.  Mrs. W. brought sliced oranges.  Just one day prior, our home was filled with other friends and family celebrating Kate’s baptism.  So, luckily, I had lots of leftover desserts:  rice krispie treats, cream cheese brownies, 7-layer bars, and lemon bars.

 It was a nice change to have everyone sit at the table and talk.  It seems that lately, Sunday dinner has involved random children screaming and doors slamming from the upstairs bedrooms.  The W. family has two boys and one girl with ages ranging from 13 to 20.  Their oldest son is a missionary for the LDS church in Texas.  As the adults talked, their youngest, a girl, sat with Kate and wrote a story about tacos, aliens, and splattering paint, adding sentences back-and-forth.

Dinner with the W. family was yet another reminder to me of the many wonderful and interesting people I am surrounded by in my community.  They give me hope that I can survive the teen years and guide my children into becoming kind, responsible adults.

Surround yourself with good people.  Whether they’re the best or not, people are capable of learning if they’ve got good hearts and they’re good souls. – KID ROCK