Family Reunion

North Korean leader Kim Jong Il will reportedly allow an American envoy to visit Pyongyang to address the Bush administration's concerns that the Communist nation is developing weapons of mass destruction, a South Korean presidential envoy said today.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Il met Thursday night with a South Korean presidential envoy in Pyongyang, the highest-level talks between the estranged Koreas in more than a year. Among the topics reportedly discussed in the North Korean capital between the reclusive Kim and South Korean envoy Lim Dong Won were the scheduling of more reunions between long-separated Korean families and the need for the North to reopen a dialogue with the United States.

Somewhere between emotions of warmth and anguish dwells the family, a group of people drawn together by need and familiarity, and sometimes even love. It is the nucleus of civilization, as historian Will Durant once said, the smallest village on Earth, a unit created for the survival of one another. Family becomes especially important in times of crisis, its components rushing together from distant places to stand against whatever threatens them.

North Korea abruptly requested today that a scheduled reunion next week of 200 separated family members in the two Korean states be postponed indefinitely, the South Korean government said. North Korea's Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland, a powerful party organization, mentioned "a situation that has been formed in South Korea," Seoul's Unification Ministry said.

The case of a homeless woman challenging Buena Park's anti-camping ordinance took a twist Wednesday as her long-estranged family unexpectedly showed up for an emotional reunion. It was a good day in court for Diane Grue, who has been homeless for 10 years. Not only did her family arrive just as she took her place at the defense table, the judge warned prosecutors he was on the verge of telling jurors they should find her not guilty.

APOLONIO H. ESCALERA CROSSED INTO THE UNITED STATES AT EL PASO in 1908, paying a penny to walk over the bridge rather than swim the Rio Grande. Ahead and to the west lay California's Imperial Valley, where a brother was already doing farm work. Behind, the Mexican Revolution was brewing, and a tall, lean, sturdy man of 21 was much too desirable as a soldier. Apolonio Escalera temporarily left behind his wife, Justina Zermano, and a small daughter, Erminia.

Rooster-coiffed rocker Rod Stewart gets along famously with all his exes. Good thing. Stewart is expected Thursday at a grand opening party for the Cotton Box, a trendy fabric store on Melrose Avenue launched by former girlfriend Kelly Emberg and her new husband, British textile tycoon Gavin Brodin. Also expected at the bash are Stewart's former wives, Rachel Hunter and Alana Hamilton, as well as Alana's first husband, tan man George Hamilton.

There were tears to go along with the blood and sweat Saturday night at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. Tears of joy. Floyd Mayweather Jr. turned in a surprisingly dominating performance against Diego Corrales, knocking Corrales down five times and winning all but one round on one scorecard before the bout was stopped in the 10th round with Mayweather remaining the undefeated World Boxing Council super-featherweight champion.

South and North Korea agreed in principle Wednesday to allow more reunions of long-separated families and take other steps toward burying decades of animosity on their divided peninsula, reports said. In a new round of Cabinet-level talks that opened in Pyongyang, the North's capital, South Korea made a series of proposals aimed at easing tension between the sides.