Bonding

Sitting around the fire with just hubby and the boys is my new favorite thing. A couple of weeks ago we were all home at the same time which is a small feat these days. It was the perfect cool fall night for a fire and some family bonding.  The youngest was the easiest to convince to come out once he heard I had marshmallows for roasting. The oldest didn’t want to come out.

We had a couple of cardboard tubes to burn and get the fire going. My husband put it in the fire in an upright position. We started to hear this roaring sound. My youngest got excited and began to explain something related to thrust. He described the process the tube would go through before it combusted or caught on fire. It was something related to rockets and I started to get concerned.  Soon flames were coming out of the end of the tube just as he described. It was cool, cool enough to get the oldest to come outside for the next tube. Soon we were all enjoying the fire, marshmallows, and a nice conversation about family and life.

When we came in the house, the boys started throwing a Nerf football around. Normally, this would be followed by me telling them, “Not in the house,” but they were getting along. They were bonding. I didn’t have the heart to stop it. Hubby agreed, so instead of stopping them he went and joined them.

This will remain one of my top family memories. There was nothing fancy about it. It wasn’t a vacation or a special  occasion. It was just us together enjoying each other. It was the simplicity of it. It captured the essence of family and God’s desire for families to be imbedded in love.

1-3 How wonderful, how beautiful,
    when brothers and sisters get along!
It’s like costly anointing oil
    flowing down head and beard,
Flowing down Aaron’s beard,
    flowing down the collar of his priestly robes.
It’s like the dew on Mount Hermon
    flowing down the slopes of Zion.
Yes, that’s where God commands the blessing,
    ordains eternal life. (Psalm 133 MSG).

 Anyone who does not provide for their relatives, and especially for their own household, has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever. (1 Timothy 5:8 NIV).

I can’t wait for the next fire. The only requirement from the tribe is marshmallows. That I can provide. Bonding is critical in families and it is harder as children get older. But, I think it is just as critical. God created us to live in families and communities. We aren’t meant to journey life alone, and it’s my prayer that we all have endless moments that draw us closer to the ones we love.

How do you bond with your loved ones? Share your experience here and breathe life and bring hope to others.

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