Opera with family

This week marks the fortieth wedding anniversary of my in-laws. Yay!

To celebrate we went out together as a family (in Zwolle). First we ate out, and then we went to the opera (La Traviata). It was a delightful evening, and I enjoyed it tremendously.

I do have to admit that I find it odd to go out to the opera with family, though. I've been to the opera a couple of times in my life, including once with Matthijs (when we were on our honeymoon). Operas just weren't part of my normal world growing up (nobody I knew even listened to operas, let alone watched them!). My own experience with opera hasn't necessarily made me appreciative of opera cds, but watching operas lives is something I do enjoy: operas nowadays have quite a bit of theatrical elements in them, and the presence of subtitles makes them much more understandable.

After everything that has happened these last months in my own family, it is impossible not to have that colour the celebration of this weekend. While it makes me miss my own family and feel my family's loss more strongly, it also makes me treasure more the family I have been given here in the Netherlands.