Some of My Best Friends

 Some of my best friends are….well, fill in the blank.  Tall, short, white, black, Christian, Jewish, Druid Vegetarian, Atheist, Unitarian, gay, straight, old, young, bleeding heart liberals, staunch conservatives, carnivores, vegetarians, hunters, animal rights activists, urban dwellers, country folk, Deadheads and opera lovers- they’re all in there.  My circle of friends is a wonderful place filled with a wide variety of interesting folks who have just one thing in common – me!

Believe it or not, they all seem to have a perfectly nice time when thrown together at one of our parties.  I think it's the candied bacon.  Everyone loves the candied bacon, even, I suspect, those who abstain due to religious, moral or dietary reasons.

Of course, the family's there, too, but unlike the friends they don't really have that much of a choice.  They're just stuck with me.  But they keep coming back, so I like to think that they are happily resigned to having me as a relative.

Speaking of families, my husband and I come from what are widely considered to be wildly different cultures, but you couldn't tell it from our families, who get along swimmingly.  At our Big Fat Interfaith Wedding, you couldn't really tell the Italians from the Jews.  Well, until it came time to dance the hora, when all the Jewish people rushed to the center of the dance floor to join in.  Meanwhile, the Italians were busy filling their plates at the Cookie Table.  Yes, that's right - the only things separating us were a dance and some desserts.

One thing my diverse colorful group of friends and family do have in common is that they are largely outspoken and forthright in expressing themselves and their opinions.  No one is afraid to say what they think.

Religion is not a very divisive issue at our parties, largely because we're not entirely undiscriminating when it comes to the people we welcome into our lives.  Hypocrites and Machiavellian mean-spirited types can just stay home.

Generally speaking, thoughtful religious people have a moral compass and some appreciation for varying religious and spiritual philosophies.  We had a rabbi and two ministers at our last open house.  The Catholic priest respectfully turned down our invitation because the open house was on a Sunday, and, well, he had to work.

Politics are another thing entirely, and we have seen many a spirited   discussion on everything from local issues (like does it make a bit of sense to replace a perfectly good parking lot holding 250 reasonably-priced parking spots in the heart of Oakland by the libraries with a patch of grass that isn't even big enough to qualify as a Park) to the presidential election. Yes, they come to the party wearing their hearts on their sleeves and their political buttons on their lapels.

But it is really lovely is to see these passionate folks agree to disagree in an environment of respect.  
The one comment I hear most from friends when they are leaving the party is,  "I always have such a good time.  You just have such nice friends." Then they tell me how much they like the candied bacon.