Family

The weekend at Fest was long, cold, and wet. Perhaps the most dismal weekend of Fest I can remember, and yet the cast and crew came together and made the most of it. We found humor and warmth and music and love somewhere scattered in between the spitting rain. We chased away the bone-chilling cold with hot chocolate, coffee, and cider. And hugs. The way that families overcome strife in the dreariest of times. For Fest is very much a family, with its share of dear nieces and crazy uncles, and the cousin who loves practical jokes.

But I have another, dearer family gifted me by nature, which has suddenly felt the chill of death. My sister's father-in-law was walking near his New York home in the pre-dawn hours of Saturday morning, when he was struck and killed by a hit-and-run driver. My sister and her husband are devastated, and my family is in shock. But we will support one another as we can, and look for humor and love between the tears, and find warmth in our words and in our hugs.