A family reunion is held next Saturday, and my mother has organized it. I know she wishes that I would take part in it, and maybe I would if it didn't take place two hundred kilometers from my current location. Or maybe not. Most of the people that are going to be there are total strangers to me; distant relatives that I have met perhaps once or twice in my life. And I am so very awkward with strangers. Shy and self-conscious and without anything to say. I am no good at small talk. Why torture myself... read more
