ERMA, TOOTHPASTE, BUBBY, GARCIA

The family. We were a strange little band of characters trudging through life sharing diseases and toothpaste, coveting one another's desserts, hiding shampoo, borrowing money, locking each other out of our rooms, inflicting pain and kissing to heal it in the same instant, loving, laughing, defending, and trying to figure out the common thread
that bound us all together. -- Erma Bombeck

A friend shared this on Facebook. Isn't it perfect? I miss Erma. I treasure those years we all passed each other in the hallways, shared jokes at the dinner table, separated the two that were fighting-either the boys or the girls (sometimes they would mix it up, but not too often), singing together in the car, doing the "Bubby" dance, quoting movie lines, rejoicing in each other's talents, and soothing each other's defeats.

And I get to watch it all happen again as my kids build their own. Mr. Garcia was pretty correct. "What a long, strange trip it's been". I would add funny and tender.