Every two years my dad’s side of the family has a family reunion. This summer I had a family reunion in Memphis Tennessee and I had a blast! The family had a vote on where to have it and the majority picked Memphis.

The first night we had something what we called a chew and chat. This is the day where everybody is arriving at the hotel and getting settled in. At the event everybody got to see each other once again or met new family members. Everybody picked a number and was assigned to that table, so you could chat with family members you didn’t know. Then while we were talking we had the chance to eat some great food.

That next day, was the family picnic and it was a miserable hot day. It was held at the state park, where all the food was prepared and arranged. We got to play family games and races, and to see who had the best skills to complete the event. One of the events we did was the sack race, but the tricky part about it was that we had to take off our shoes and put them back on once we had got back there with the sack. Then we also got the chance to bust a piñata and once we had busted it, candy just started to bust out everywhere. All the kids that were around started to scramble and fight for as much candy as possible. When it was all over with and done, I had a bag full of candy and enjoyed eating all the treats I had grabbed. Once everybody got back inside, everyone was exhausted and needed to regain their energy back. To our surprise, we got to cool off with some Cold Stone ice cream. This was my first time trying this brand of ice cream and I enjoyed it with some creamy caramel on top!

The next day was the best to me out off all the days we spent in Memphis. We got to spend a day at this place called Incredible Pizza, it reminded me of a Chuck E. Cheese and Dave and Buster combined, bit better! It was a full buffet with ices, cinnamon rolls, and any pizza you could name. It had bumper cars, putt-putt golf, a bowling alley, go karts, and hundreds of other games. Later that night, we had our family ball. Everyone danced, learned about our ancestors and roots, and watched family pictures of past reunions. It was really interesting learning what our ancestors used to do for a living and how our name got to be what it is today.

Unfortunately, the next day it was time to go and we had a family breakfast before we left. Everybody said their good-byes and gave their hugs and kisses, and then we closed it out with a family prayer. This was my best family reunion ever because, I also went to the civil rights museum and saw where Dr. King got shot, and Elvis Presley’s Graceland. This is a trip I will never forget and I can’t wait until we have our next family reunion on a cruise in Miami Florida!