The Allman (assumed name) family was a fairly typical American family with two working parents,three energetic and individualistic children, a comfortable lifestyle that included occasionalattendance at a Unitarian church; a somewhat hands off father; and a mother/ wife who feltoverworked and underappreciated, as she managed the familys daily routine, dealing with issuesfrom sibling rivalry, sniffles, and snacks for school lunches. Yet the family maintained a unifyingcloseness and commitment that held them together during rough times. It wasnt until the kidswere grown and gone and the mom became ill, however, that the family discovered both hiddenweaknesses and hidden strengths that would tear down previously unrecognized barriers andbring the family closer than they had ever imagined possible. Key to that discovery was theunlikely (in their lives) element of meditation.