By Jeanne Marie Anderson

The memory that always makes me SMILE is the summer weekend family reunion at Uncles Angel and Joe’s farm in central Illinois. I must have been about 14.

The great outdoors met all the expectations. But that cabin? Nobody wanted to fight the spiders and possible snakes overnight.

Mom, Aunt Jen and Grandma unpacked all the food they’d made. Favorite dishes of Grandma’s tortellini Mom’s blackberry cobbler and potato salad, and Aunt Jen’s cream puffs.

Dad and Uncle Tony got a pit, the spit and the fire ready to roast a very large pig.

All of us cousins took off to explore, roaming around and playing until dusk. Just in time to watch Grandma season that pig with garlic and rosemary.

Dad and Uncle Tony were ready for an all-night vigil turning the spit and roasting the main course. They had a few beers to help them keep going overnight.

We kids had the extraordinary adventure of sleeping under the stars on tarps covering picnic tables.

In the morning, Uncle Tony and dad shouted for Grandma to come inspect the pig. They said it was full of worms!

Those aren’t worms, she told them. That’s rosemary seasoning. You both need stop get some SLEEP.

Dad crawled in the backseat of our car for a snooze. Uncle Tony climbed into the trunk.

And Aunt Jen slammed it shut while Uncle Tony slept it off.