Family Reunion

Our "family," Liz, Steven, Pops, Karli, Me, Ma, and Becca.

Two years ago, in the Summer of 2010, I was fortunate enough to go on a mission trip to Washington DC with my best friend Becca. The original plan was to go to Los Angeles, but the group we were to travel with had a few issues with their LA branch, so we were re-routed to DC, and I am so glad we were.
We spent nearly two weeks working with children in the projects, giving them a Vacation Bible School in the afternoons. We would walk around the buildings with Kids Konnection, a locally trusted Christian kids organization.
When we weren't running VBS, we could be found cleaning up battered women's shelters, playing with children of single mothers, and sitting in the church vans that belonged to the group from Missouri (Becca and I were the only 'Zonies.) It was a wonderful trip, mostly because we got to help people and spend time with adorable kids (did I mention the kids were adorable?) It was also amazing because of the people we met.
We were housed with a random family that our mission trip organizational agency knew through a church, and they were the most perfect people I have ever met. By perfect, I mean they were my type of people. Their last name was Friend, and that's what we all were by the end of the trip. When we first entered their front door, they waited five minutes for us to get settled, then said "Alright, you've been here five minutes. You're no longer guests, you're family." We were promptly given a tour of the house, including the massive basement garage named "Costco East," where all food and drink needs could be found. We were showed how to use the coffee pots, how to load our dirty dishes into the washer, and where to find clean dishes. I loved it because it was clear they didn't do anything special because "guests were coming over," much unlike my family (my mother cleans obsessively before we have company.) I felt like I fit right in with them
We didn't get to spend much time there, as we left for the dense District of Columbia at 7:30 am, and often didn't return until 9 pm, when we were falling asleep standing up. Thankfully, we didn't need to sleep, and stayed up late a few nights with Ma and Pops, Karli and Liz (two girls from the Missouri church), and we discussed ghost stories, family history, and things to do around DC. It was wonderful. When we left, Ma and Pops encouraged us to stop by any time we visit DC, and we promised them the same whenever they visited Phoenix or Missouri.

A few months ago, I learned Ma was coming to Phoenix on a business trip, and Pops was going to come for the elongated weekend as a vacation. Of course, I had to invite them over to dinner. Becca and I were so excited to see them!
We cooked a delicious (and nutritious, of course) dinner of quinoa, chicken, spinach salad, fruit salad, squash, ciabatta bread, and Mexican hot chocolate brownies. Dinner was filled with discussions between my parents, Becca's parents, and Ma and Pops (this was the first time they had all met). It was great to get to see them, eat dinner, and talk about life. Of course, we had to take a picture after dinner. We look so different now, from then. Ma has longer hair, Pops has grayer hair, and Becca and I both look older
To be honest, when I left DC, I doubted I would ever get to see such wonderful people again, but sometimes things fall together perfectly, and you are able to enjoy the company of some of the coolest people you have ever met once again. A trip to Washington, DC, is definitely simmering in the back of my mind. It probably won't be this summer, but sometime in the future, I want to go back and grace the Friend household with my presence once again.