Despite some apprehension, the former sister wives took time to reminisce on some of their fondest memories

NEED TO KNOW

• Christine, Janelle and Meri Brown met up for the “first time” in years on the latest episode of Sister Wives and pored over old photos from their “complicated” past
• The former sister wives each opened up about how they feel their past has shaped who they are today and weighed in on how their relationships have developed over time
• Christine expressed an interest in meeting up with Janelle and Meri again, though Meri showed hesitation

Christine, Janelle and Meri Brown have reunited.

The former sister wives sat down together for what Christine claimed is their “first conversation in years” on the second episode of Sister Wives’ 21st season and pored over photos and memories from their nearly 30 years as a plural family.

According to Janelle, it was the first time the trio has gotten together since Christine announced she was leaving during a socially distanced gathering at her house, in season 17.

But there was some apprehension among the women, especially Christine and Meri, as Christine has openly discussed her hesitations with continuing a relationship with her former sister wife after divorcing their ex-husband, Kody Brown.

“I’m here for a purpose. I’m not really here to socialize,” said Christine, noting that her “ultimate goal” is to simply get some photos from Meri that she has not seen in years.

The women oohed and aahed over many of the snapshots, including one of the kids dressed in clothing made from old curtains — which Christine claimed was inspired by The Sound of Music.

The former sister wives also examined several photos featuring their ex-husband, and reminisced about how he was a “great dad” for many years.

“Maddy said once a long time ago that Kody’s children were his soul mates,” Janelle recalled in a confessional. “His children were his center of his universe back then. And I mean he loved us, he loved his wives. But his children were his joy. He loved them.”

But when Meri and Janelle suggested recreating an old portrait they took with Christine (“We look so plyg!” Janelle exclaimed in a confessional), Christine was not on board.

The picture, Christine felt, highlighted the “hierarchy of wives” — Meri, the first wife, at the top; Janelle, the second wife, in the middle; and Christine, the third wife, at the bottom of the image.

“I was just last. I was put on the bottom,” she lamented, cringing at the old dynamic where the wives were “always having to work everything out, and everything was so damn complicated.”

However, Meri did not read into the photograph the same way. “It’s really unfortunate that it has caused those kinds of emotions with her,” she added, “and I feel bad for that.”

Despite this, and the difficult times the former sister wives faced in recent years, Meri expressed pride in their ability to remain “comfortable and confident” in themselves, and who they are with each other.

“Once a family splits up, it’s easy to just go into all the hard times and all the anger and all the challenges through plural marriage,” she conceded. But, she added, “it’s so good to be reminded in this moment of all the good things too. We know our history, we know our past, we know where we are with each other.”

Meri acknowledged that “life was hard” for her and her former sister wives at times during their marriages to Kody. But now, she has a new appreciation for everyone — including herself.

“What I appreciate is the growth that I have had,” Meri revealed in a confessional, “and I appreciate the chance to get to know Christine and Janelle of who they are now and for them to get to know me of who I am now.”

Later, Janelle admitted she has “no regrets” about the life she once lived. “I don’t really want to go back and do it again,” she remarked, “but I’m really happy about the family we’ve built, so it’s worth it.”

Christine also shared a similar sentiment: “I am who I am today because of my past and the people that were in it and the choices that I made while I was there. So Meri and Janelle were definitely part of that.”

Meeting up with Christine and Janelle even helped Meri reach a revelation about herself: “There’s still work on myself that I have to do.”

“I found myself just going into that place of survival, you know, in this first meeting of us together in a really long time,” Meri explained in a confessional earlier in the episode, adding, “I think this is a good way to, you know, jump into that.”

At various points during the conversation, Christine even floated the idea of reuniting with Janelle and Meri once again — including for a possible motorhome trip, calling back to previous family vacations. 

But Meri was quick to express some skepticism over the idea, and later revisited her hesitations with Christine.

“I’m a little bit cautious about it,” she admitted in a confessional, “and I feel like conversations, especially between me and Christine, need to be had just because I need some clarity on what it needs to look like.

Sister Wives airs on Sundays at 10 p.m. ET on TLC.

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