my45spirit: Family Gathering

Family is a group of people who share the same DNA, and lucky me that they also share the same closeness at heart with me.

I am the first child in my family and have 3 siblings who live in 3 different cities. But we often call one another and have this family gathering once a month. This family gathering (arisan) is very popular in my country and the one I was attending a few days ago is from my mother side. So it consists of my mother's siblings, cousins and nieces. There are 28 people joined this arisan, but when they come, they also bring their families so you will have a lot of people in your home.

The arisan starts at 2 pm. People will come to your home, you offer some snacks and beverages and then we just chat with one another. There is noprogram but have chats with everybody because the main reason arisan is held, is to connect everybody in the family, to know their latest news, to know if any of us is sick or about to get married or to have a child or anything. Seeing people in person, talking straight to one's eye, sitting close to each other worth better than just connecting via phone. This might what our older family had in mind when they started this arisan, I've been attending it with my mother since I was little.

So we just keep talking and snacking, and about 3.30 pm, the home owner will offer us another food, usually the heavier one. And we eat, laugh, and talk about everything again from politics to car to holiday etc. After that, our treasurer will shake a box. In it were our names written in folded paper, then she picks up one, and read it. The next arisan will be held at the name picked's home. Than we discuss the date the arisan will be held next month. With 28 members, you will have your turn every 2 years. About 4.30, people will start leaving your home, with some people with closer family relation will stay longer or even spend the night there if they're out of town like what my sister and I did in my aunty's home a few days ago.

The arisan at my aunty's home was held on Sunday, I arrived there on Saturday afternoon and my sister was on Saturday night. We helped my aunty prepared the food for the arisan.