"A story untold is a story ignored..."

Dear L,

For the past two weeks, we've had relatives from my dad's side visiting at our house. I've gained weight from eating Filipino feasts every night. I've lost sleep from staying up all night with my cousins. I've had to share a bedroom and bathroom with my parents. One could say it's been a "rough" two weeks, but honestly, I have loved every second of it.

Being around my family made me realize that people are books. I guess that's not an original idea, but this idea came to life as my dad and his cousin looked through old pictures and shared stories with the rest of us. I have always been curious about my parents' lives and my relatives' lives before they came to the States - what it was like to grow up in a close-knit community in the Philippines half a century ago- and I've only ever heard bits and pieces. Many of those bits and pieces, however, came together late one night last week when we were all just hanging out in our living room.

Stories. A story of my uncle stealing a neighbor's chicken at night and using it to cook Arroz Caldo (a Filipino dish). A story of my dad getting hit by a taxi and his older brother getting his friends to beat up the guy driving the taxi. A story of my mom shaking her booty at the disco so my dad would notice. A story of my dad and his cousins playing basketball late at night in the rain.

My dad. My mom. My aunts, uncles, cousins. You. Me.

Books.

My dad has often said that it would have been nice to have a video camera when he was younger so we could have images of the stories he shares with us. Part of me a wishes that, but a bigger part of me doesn't. Home videos and pictures are wonderful, don't get me wrong (I LOVE MY FLIP) but they serve their purpose. The stories that are shared by word of mouth can be just as vivid, if not more, because one is able to hear humanness and honesty in the sound of the words.

It's important to ask our parents to share their stories. It's important for us to share our stories with others. And it's important for us to realize that our moments, good and bad, are our stories and to never take them for granted. Who is to say when our books will end? All we can really do is to live with open ears, open eyes, open arms, and an open heart.

In one word - love.

Everything you said in your last post :]

You're beautiful, inside and out.

Love,
G Love