Take any holiday morning…and the Quinn-Rowe family is dressed to the nines. My mother is wearing her “holiday diamonds” and is emulating a Jackie O. style. Freshly showered and finally smelling like something other than last night’s Fireball shots, my brothers are dapper alongside one another in their button-downs and loafers. Kevin, my stepfather, is hurrying us all along in his pressed suit as I rush to the car in my 6-inch high heels and “church wear.”
Every Easter starts out traditional. The table is set with our best china and my mother serves a home cooked meal, always leaving our family with our stomachs aching from eating too much. When it comes to family celebrations at the Quinn-Rowe house, the night isn’t over until there’s a declared loser and winner from “Game Night.” Let the family games begin.
At this point in the evening, after everyone has kicked back a few at dinner, we begin the “minute to win it”-style games. The family swaps their Sunday bests for their comfy “warrior wears.” Button downs become T-shirts, heels are traded in for sneakers, and fancy up-do’s transform into slicked back ponytails.
Mama’ Quinn has already spent weeks planning “Game Night.” The activities range from balancing a balloon in the air using only paddles to eating a cookie without using your hands when it’s placed on your forehead.
We all split up into designated teams. The number of teams usually depends on if my brothers are dating anyone and bring their girlfriends. It usually works out for me if they do because they’re usually not any good at the games and are too shy to be competitive. But the Quinn-Rowe Easter games are less like a celebration of a holiday and more like the Hunger Games. And I am KatnissEverdeen.
Round after round, the Quinn-Rowes compete in our fierce yet friendly family competition. The losing team complains that the games were unfair. The winners disagree.
As the night comes to an end, I think about what makes our holiday family gathering so special. I realize these years will someday come to an end…my brothers and I will be celebrating with our own families down the road, but for now – it’s as if time stands still – and it’s fun just being together creating memories that I know will last a lifetime.
Alexa Rowe is from Longmeadow, Massachusetts. She is a communication major at Western New England University.
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