There is something so comforting about being surrounded by your siblings and cousins that relaxes your shoulders and makes you feel invincible. Add a layer of aunts, uncles, and grandparents that have your back, and suddenly, it just feels like a safe space.  Perhaps it’s because blood is thicker than water, or maybe it’s because those aunts and uncles all have something on one another, but it feels like nothing could break the bond you’re sharing right this minute. 

Six years ago, our version of this family group gathered for a bridal shower. Our Sydney was getting married in a few months, and we had all convened in Nashville for a bridal tea that consisted mostly of family. It was a beautiful weekend full of love, laughter, and pure joy. We rarely all gather in one place for an entire weekend, so it was even more special. 

Everyone had driven hours to be together on this beautiful October weekend, and while it was a girls-only event, we had a couple of the uncles present because they helped drive some of our guests the 6+ hours. While they weren’t allowed during the tea, we made an exception that evening as we sat around Sydney’s family room drinking wine and eating dinner on the floor. Stories were passed around like candy, and we laughed until we cried. Hotel rooms were abandoned in favor of a giant sleepover for most of those present, and suddenly, plans were made for a mid-morning breakfast before everyone would have to make the trek back to their various homes.

The next morning, as we shared pastries and copious amounts of caffeine, the younger generation began to open up. Sydney’s car debacles at this point were the things legends were made of, and if a girl of 22 could admit her driving stories so openly as the room laughed in response, then those older teens thought maybe it was time to unburden their souls as well. 

It started slowly at first. A young niece sharing a little more about a flat tire than her dad knew. Maybe it wasn’t just a tire that suddenly went flat. She unleashed a story that involved driving on that flat tire to another state and back before she told her dad and had it fixed. Her dad’s eyes nearly popped out of his head, but as soon as he began to get fired up, these girls were cradled in the arms of a legendary story about their dad when he was their age. It was a doozy! Oh, yes, these aunts and uncles all grew up together, and they had all the dirt.  Their dad drove the car through flood waters to deliver a $10 pizza and destroyed the transmission of their family car. 

Oh, they were safe, alright. 

So, the next story unfolded about that mysterious dent in the car that nobody knew about. Or did they?

It turned out that the twins were driving some country roads one night and decided they needed to turn around. Now, don’t get stuck on the fact that these teenagers were driving the country roads; I’m sure it was totally innocent. Winky face. Anyway, as they were trying to do a 15-point turn on that narrow country road, they knocked over someone’s mailbox. Yep, they sure did, and what did they do? They did what any terrified teenager would do, and they took off down that road swearing to never tell Dad, until now. 

Oh, man, their dad may never get over this one. It wasn’t because of the giant dent in the car but because he would have gone and built a new mailbox for these poor people if he had known. The guilt and shame all these years later, not by the girls, but by their dad, is real, and he may never recover.

It’s okay because we all grew up with their dad, and we just threw out another tale about their dad’s driving skills, and all was well. 

This was getting good, and it was so freeing. The nieces continued to regale us with another story about driving over the median and destroying the bottom of the car. Honestly, at this point, we were all rolling on the floor laughing hysterically, so I don’t even remember the tale they told, but it was clearly news to their dad. 

When it finally came time to depart, I was relieved that the twins would be riding in their aunt’s car rather than with their dad, but their faces said it all.  They had been absolved of their crimes in the court of family law, never to be tried again.  At least not until they have teenagers of their own, and then surely the cousins will remind them of their own driving record.

We are all in this together. 

Once upon a time, we were all teenagers, and we all did stupid things. Maybe you got caught, maybe you came clean right away, or perhaps you’re still holding onto that dent in your mind. If so, it’s time to release it and enjoy a good laugh with your family. Just be sure to time those confessions appropriately. You do not want to confess your crime without the support of those aunts and uncles who knew your parents when, and it’s also a great buffer if you can have your cousins who are only a wee bit older there to share their stories, as well. 

If you have a great coming-of-age story that you’d like to share, let us know. We would love to write about it, commiserate with you, and exonerate you.