Mediate Michigan

One of the nicest things my parents did after their divorce was to spend Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner together as a family, not just one year but several. At the time, I didn’t realize how unusual this was, nor did I have any understanding of how difficult this must have been for each of my parents. In retrospect, we were a strange group after a few years: my dad with his serious girlfriend in tow; my mom with her new husband; my sisters with their boyfriends (who eventually became their husbands); my brother and I usually stag, although some years we had a serious mate at our side. My new step-brother and step-sister came too. There were some awkward moments, but it worked well enough to make us feel like we were still a family, divorce and all.

via Alison Patton: Sucking It Up For The Kids.