About 6 years ago, my Shumway family had a reunion in Sedona under the beautiful red rocks and luscious green leaves. This was our first reunion with every member of the family. We reserved several campsites in the campgrounds and would gather in the dirt lot next to my family’s camper. My dad has seven sisters and one brother. Each of his siblings is married and has a few kids, blessing me with over forty-five cousins, just on the Shumway side. If you have ever seen my family, you know we are a rowdy bunch. All of us are weird, loud, and slightly short tempered. Especially when all sixty of us get together, we are definitely a walking circus, and, may I add, a very entertaining family to watch.
During this amazing vacation, I was about twelve years old and considerably immature (I’m pretty sure I brought Barbies for the car ride over.) We had a lot of time on our hands because there was no way the adults would stay sane with forty-five kids running around a restaurant or the busy streets of Sedona. I was totally fine with that though, because it meant we got to play cards, rope swing, swim in the creek nearby, and hang around a fire all weekend long. One day as we were all hanging out in one of the cabins, one of my aunts called me into a room and sat me down on the bed. With a concerned look on her face, she quietly said, “ You know, Savana, you would be really pretty if you just stood up straighter. I’ve noticed lately that you slouch a lot, and I think you could look more attractive if you had good posture. Just try it right now, sit up straight.” I rolled my shoulders back and violently stared at the floor. Not knowing how to escape the awkward situation, I said, “I’ll definitely try that, thank you.” I nodded and got up from the bed and slipped out of the cabin with my cousin, Briana, to tell her of the horrible situation I encountered. I was stunned that a woman I looked up to so much could hurt me so painfully with just a few words. I told her how I felt offended and that I was honestly mad that she would say such a thing to me.
I blew if off as best as I could until a few hours later, a different aunt came up to me , placed her hand on my back and smiled, “I can’t stand girls with bad posture.” A little laugh escaped between her teeth and I winced. I ran in the other direction, grabbing Briana from a conversation with another cousin. I could not believe that my aunts were so cruel and harsh. The tenacity they had to tell me how to be pretty without one kind word about me made me angry. I expressed my anger, frustration, and sadness that all my aunts thought I was ugly because I had bad posture.
These feelings stirred within me, causing me to avoid eye contact with my aunts in fear of another confrontation of my slouching posture. I felt this way another day or so until we had a family party in the camp “club house.” As I mentioned before, Shumways are loud and obnoxious, yet outgoing and fun. We all got together after a long day in the sun and all sixty of us packed into a room with a few couches and chairs smooshed together. It was quite a sight to see! A ton of people smashed onto couch arms or on the floor. One by one a group or family would stand up in a corner and perform some ridiculous version of a song, skit, or a joke that filled the room with contagious laughter. As I sat watching each “act,” I began to forget the heartache that was on my mind for the past few days. I came to realize that I loved each member of my family equally and the fun we had together. I had so much fun that night and I learned to forgive. My aunts only meant well and were just trying to help me grow into a beautiful young woman. Now, my aunts are some of my best friends and I look forward to every chance to get their advice for this hard world.
I look back on this time and I cannot be anything but grateful for my family in many different ways:
During this amazing vacation, I was about twelve years old and considerably immature (I’m pretty sure I brought Barbies for the car ride over.) We had a lot of time on our hands because there was no way the adults would stay sane with forty-five kids running around a restaurant or the busy streets of Sedona. I was totally fine with that though, because it meant we got to play cards, rope swing, swim in the creek nearby, and hang around a fire all weekend long. One day as we were all hanging out in one of the cabins, one of my aunts called me into a room and sat me down on the bed. With a concerned look on her face, she quietly said, “ You know, Savana, you would be really pretty if you just stood up straighter. I’ve noticed lately that you slouch a lot, and I think you could look more attractive if you had good posture. Just try it right now, sit up straight.” I rolled my shoulders back and violently stared at the floor. Not knowing how to escape the awkward situation, I said, “I’ll definitely try that, thank you.” I nodded and got up from the bed and slipped out of the cabin with my cousin, Briana, to tell her of the horrible situation I encountered. I was stunned that a woman I looked up to so much could hurt me so painfully with just a few words. I told her how I felt offended and that I was honestly mad that she would say such a thing to me.
I blew if off as best as I could until a few hours later, a different aunt came up to me , placed her hand on my back and smiled, “I can’t stand girls with bad posture.” A little laugh escaped between her teeth and I winced. I ran in the other direction, grabbing Briana from a conversation with another cousin. I could not believe that my aunts were so cruel and harsh. The tenacity they had to tell me how to be pretty without one kind word about me made me angry. I expressed my anger, frustration, and sadness that all my aunts thought I was ugly because I had bad posture.
These feelings stirred within me, causing me to avoid eye contact with my aunts in fear of another confrontation of my slouching posture. I felt this way another day or so until we had a family party in the camp “club house.” As I mentioned before, Shumways are loud and obnoxious, yet outgoing and fun. We all got together after a long day in the sun and all sixty of us packed into a room with a few couches and chairs smooshed together. It was quite a sight to see! A ton of people smashed onto couch arms or on the floor. One by one a group or family would stand up in a corner and perform some ridiculous version of a song, skit, or a joke that filled the room with contagious laughter. As I sat watching each “act,” I began to forget the heartache that was on my mind for the past few days. I came to realize that I loved each member of my family equally and the fun we had together. I had so much fun that night and I learned to forgive. My aunts only meant well and were just trying to help me grow into a beautiful young woman. Now, my aunts are some of my best friends and I look forward to every chance to get their advice for this hard world.
I look back on this time and I cannot be anything but grateful for my family in many different ways:
- I have the most fun when I am with my family.
- They love me for who I am and want to help me to become better.
- I can always be myself around them and not worry about people judging me.
- I can always count on them for growing experiences.
There is no better time to learn to forgive than now. People in the world are going to hurt you. College is going to be rough if we can’t figure out that people will treat us badly and that we will need to forgive them. Otherwise, we will be stuck in sadness and anger all our lives. So, sit up taller and let mean words roll down your back. Take some great advice from Taylor Swift and just “shake it off!”
Savana! I love this blog post, mainly because I relate to it, but also because of the use of the language in it. Your story was no where close to being boring. I admire how young you were and how you felt the need to protect your cousins, because I have been on the receiving side of the protection. I have a huge, annoying family that I love, and, I hope, love me too. And I love when my family gets together. And sadly, I, too, have the aunts that believe they know everything.
ReplyDeleteLast but not least, I love your last sentence, and Taylor Swift. :)
Well first off I am a little jealous of the crazy, big family that you have! I only have five, first cousins, two aunts, and two uncles, so I do not necessarily relate to your family by size. But beyond that, your blog was so well written, the use of diction really put me in the scene that were trying to show to your readers. When I read what your aunts had said to you, I just couldn’t help but thinking, “How rude!” However, I love how you turned that situation into a positive one. It is never easy to hear someone you love point out a flaw, especially at the age of twelve. And you are right, as we grow we are going to have mean or hurtful words thrown our way, but we have to learn to love ourselves to not let those words affect us. You’re beautiful inside and out Savana!
ReplyDeleteLet me start off by saying...45 cousins!?! That's insane! How do you remember all of their names! If they are anything like you then they must be fun, talented, caring, and passionate! I do think it is a little weird that out of all the things your aunts could have said to you, they pick a flaw. makes me a little worried because I too have bad posture, so does that make me ugly? Just kidding you are far from ugly! I am happy that you were able to see the positive out of all of that. It goes to show that you are just as beautiful on the inside as you are on the outside.
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