Survivor Family

Last Thursday was the kick-off of Survivor. I can no longer be called a Survivor rookie. I have now loyally watched two seasons- the second of which I picked the winner for (thank you Aras!)
Every Thursday night during Survivor seasons, we gather at the Barkers house. Karla makes amazing home-cooked meals, something we singletons LOVE! Brandon will grill and engage us in interesting topics of conversation. Now, the past two seasons, it was only the Barkers, Jennifer, Monica for the first, and myself. This past week with the start of the new season, there were a lot of people there- Jon and his wife Kelly came later, Travis, Jeremy, Eric and of course the kids Grace, Seth, and Jayla (sp?). We filled the basement as we crowded around the television to cheer on our favorite players. We (or should I say mostly me) got shushed by Brandon every few minutes, as talking is NOT allowed! A wonderful time was had by all- or at least it seemed so.
I personally look forward to each Thursday night. It doesn't seem to matter how tired I am, I always get excited as I'm driving to the Barker's house. Though I have learned to enjoy the show, this is not my real reason for going; I never watched before joining everyone there. I wanted some fellowship, some friends that I could share laughter and tears with. What I got though was so much more than that- I got a family. They are my Survivor family. We are an odd bunch, much stranger than the weirdest of normal families, but we are still family. And as Brandon says, "Family sticks together." Even when their Survivor pick has been kicked off and the rookie's has won!