Checking my quickly dwindling checking account today (thank goodness payday is tomorrow), I notice a $99 charge from Amazon.

“Crap! I forgot that I signed up for the free trial of Amazon Prime.”  I think to myself, should I cancel and get my money back or try it out?

Try it out! That little voice in my head says.

“It’s just $99 a year, includes two day shipping and they have e-books, audiobooks, television shows, movies and…music?”

What?! Music?! I had no idea that Amazon Prime had music.  Score! Music. My absolute favorite thing.

I attach my phone to my car radio and select the “Classic Hits” station.  “We are Family” by Sister Sledge comes on and the biggest smile comes to my face.  In my mind’s eye, I see me and my sisters dancing and singing at all ages of our life…

“We are Family…I’ve got all my sisters with me…”

The song ends but the memories go on.

The beginning of the next song starts, soft and easily identified.  Carly Simon begins singing the first line of “You’re So Vain” and usually I see the hat, the apricot scarf, but this time, I see my mom in the kitchen of one of our childhood homes singing the chorus.

When I was little my mom would sing this song acapella.  She sung the song so beautifully that I was convinced she made up all the words to the song right along with her other made up songs like the one she loved to sing when I was little:

“We all live in a yellow submarine, a yellow submarine…”  My smile gets bigger and bigger as I drive along to my new Amazon Prime streaming music app.

Another song comes on.  A classic hit starts as I remember bopping along in the passenger seat while my dad is driving us all along in a big burgundy and mauve conversion van across the United States to New York to visit family before we leave America yet again.

“What they do? They smile in your face…”

Singing along with the O’Jays, learning at a young age about Backstabbers.

“Time After Time”…
“Rock Me Amadeus”…
“Sailing”

My smile gets bigger as my heart swells with love.  Love for my sisters, love for my mom, love for my dad.  I had a wonderful childhood filled with music and love.  Of course there were bad times, every family is far from perfect.  But when I think of all the horrible, tragic scenarios played out in the crime scenes that I go to, I know how blessed I was and still am.

On this #ThankfulThursday, I want to sing the praises of my family.  Although I don’t say it often (damn my INTJ personality), I have so many happy memories, so much love inside for each and everyone one of you.  Thank you for being my sister, mom and dad.