The guests at my brother Sean’s wedding have formed a huge circle on the dance floor, ready to watch Uncle Johnny and Aunt Peggy do their Peabody. They’ll have the floor to themselves. It’s a tradition in Mama’s family, a kind of initiation performed for each of the many cousins at their receptions. My aunt and uncle stand very straight and still, their bodies several inches apart, his arm around her waist, her hand on his shoulder, elbow sharply high. The hands they reach out with to...
