Family Fun (?)

I can't remember the last 4th of July I spent with my family... Maybe when my brother was a baby?

Somewhere between Christmas and Bartleby's death my sister stopped ignoring me and her husband (gasp) started emerging as a reasonably nice person. I have actually stopped calling him "the baby daddy" and started calling him my brother-in-law. Like, to his face and stuff. He also stopped calling my mother a bitch... and has been (gasp again) invited to my parents' house this afternoon. And it is reported that he might actually come.

So my dad will burn burgers and hot dogs (seriously, I was in my 20's before I realized you could grill without charring) and we will all play nice and swim with the babies.

It's weird how death changes things... the brother-in-law's dad died just before Bartleby... maybe a week before... and the combination of those two losses pushed my family back together in a way that we haven't been able to manage for at least the last three years or so. There are still issues, but everyone sort of reached out reflexively and met in the middle.

It's a good thing... I think. We can at least all start to heal together and move forward.

So happy 4th of July everyone! Don't blow your hand off with homemade explosives!