CARPE FEUDIEM

So there we were...strangers drawn together by our unique circumstances.  Three or four dozen survivors fearing, yet hoping that we might be next...but above all, hoping to escape with our lives.  No; this wasn't a group of Chilean miners.  And we certainly weren't families in a German concentration camp (no matter how bleak the future seemed).  But we were families...and we came from all over the map.  The Rios family from Chicago; the Thomas family from Georgia; the Wilson family from Orlando; the Whittern family from Oklahoma.  And I know that some of us (all of us) were wondering, "what were we thinking?" or "how did we get ourselves into this?"  And it was a reasonable query without a doubt: Why submit yourselves to possible public embarrassment?  And not just limited, controlled embarrassment amongst friends or family.  This could be coast to coast, replayed again and again, long after you're dead and gone YouTube-worthy embarrassment.

Actually, twelve families would start the day there in one of the Nickelodeon Studio 'green rooms' with dreams of 'big green money'...but only one family would leave with no regrets.  Most would quickly crash and burn.  We had already seen it happen.  We sat there in the audience as they taped the first two episodes of the day for the new season of Family Feud.  We saw the deer in the headlight stares.  We saw the split second difference between buzzing in, and sent home packing.  Yes, we saw the thrill of victory.  But we were especially cognizant now of the agony of defeat.  We watched as the ones with the 'wrong answers' came filing back in.  We saw the dejection.  We felt the'walk of shame' (or at least the 'descent of despondency').

Sure, we were told over and over again, "Enjoy the experience!" and "Just have fun!"  But isn't that what we're told to do every day?  Live the moment!  There are no promises of tomorrow!  That's been our instructions for nearly 3000 years!

Proverbs 27:1  Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring forth.

Easier said than done.  So we tried our best to 'seize the day' (but in this case, it soon morphed into a modern case of Carpe Feudiem: Seize control of the game and try to sweep the board!)  What else could we do? We had already told all of our friends, neighbors, relatives, co-workers, church members, grocery store clerks, nurses, doctors, the whole staff at Walgreens, and every one we ran into that we were going to be on the Family Feud for goodness sakes!!!  Our tunnel memory up to that point was only of the 'high fives' and 'jumping jacks' that accompanied accurate answers and successful 'steals'.  No thought had been given to the SCARLET X of DEFEAT when they superimposed a Big Fat X across your face with each wrong response!  But the reality of it all quickly erased our delusions of becoming Game Show Juggernauts.

First thing, we were stripped of our IDs and our cell phones, and were all herded into the chamber (aka: the studio); then bright lights were pointed in our faces as we were grilled and questioned in 'rehearsal'.  'Rehearsal' is where you quickly go through a mock game play while you're being watched, graded, and sized up for 'show worthiness'.  Many are called...but not everyone is chosen (two or three families didn't make the show).  Personally, I wasn't really 'feeling it' in rehearsal and I wasn't sure how well we 'graded'.  I'm used to being 'under the spotlights' at the Rodeo Opry (and even in church, leading the music).  But 'hecklers' are few and far between at those venues...and the feedback from a performance is rarely so quickly received (or so anxiously awaited).  Let me just say that we definitely felt the difference between the lights of the living room and the lights of the studio.  And that was just with 'Eric' the 'stand-in' host!  So initially we were relegated to the audience and nervously sat and waited, knowing that Steve Harvey would soon be asking the questions (if and when we were chosen).  And this is a man who makes his living poking fun at the masses...in fact, his 'gift' is to see the humor in people and to make sport of them...especially their silly actions and their 'dumb' answers; and isn't that the charm of the Family Feud...normal people...being their normal, but human selves?  And here I was surrounded by a family of blondes.  Not dumb blondes; but blonde lambs, nonetheless, voluntarily being led by their shepherd to the slaughter.  So what do you do in times like these?  Seek solace in the Bible, of course:

Jeremiah 25:34 Weep and wail, you shepherds; roll in the dust, you leaders of the flock. For your time to be slaughtered has come; you will fall and be shattered like fine pottery.

Ooops.  "Bad answer, Bad answer!"

It was actually comforting and calming to observe a couple of shows...to watch the whole procedure...to witness the pressure from afar.  And fortunately, in our case, the waiting was quickly replaced by a sudden swarm of butterflies, for as we were walking out of the studio, towards the Green Room, I looked back and noticed out of the corner of my eye, that they had flashed 'WHITTERN' in blue lights behind the Family Podium, right across the stage from the high energy family that had just won their second game.  Gulp!!!

"Alright WHITTERN family...YOU'RE ON!"

1 Corinthians 9:24  Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.

Did we win?  Well, I can tell you that we ran a good race.  Were we embarrassed?  Well, I can also tell you that we did have some 'blonde moments' (and Steve Harvey had fun with the Whitterns).  How many of those moments made the show (and how they helped or hindered our success) will only be completely known (and shown) when the show hits the air.  At this writing, I don't know the day or hour; but unlike the return of Christ (Matthew 25:13 "Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour), in this case, the day and the hour (and the channel) will be e-mailed to me in a couple of weeks...then I will pass all that on to you.

Would you like a 'sneak peek'?  Well, one behind the scenes note: the crew quickly nicknamed Holly 'thong' and Katie 'bong'! (You'll see why when the show airs!)  There's even a cameo appearance from Rachel and her whole family (via the magic of FlipVideo).  And rumor has it that a video exists of the 'dance off' between Tito Rios and myself to the Black Eyed Peas tune "I Gotta Feeling" ("tonight's gonna be a good, good night!")

Yeah, I think we made the most of each moment :) and escaped with our lives (and our dignity).  So I'll close with this overused cliche: Film at 11:00 (or probably at 1:00 in Oklahoma).  I'll let you know!