Two days after the wedding, I bid farewell to my husband who's bound to go back to Singapore for work. It was heart-breaking, knowing that he loves being home and being around a lot of people by the time he wakes up until the wee hours. It wouldn't be that way in Singapore. It was also the longest time ever we were apart since we became a married couple. Well, it was all part of the experience, and although my hubby only stayed home over the weekend, I got to stay for another 2 weeks to sort out some family stuffs.
For 2 weeks, I stayed with my parents. It's been a while since the last time I spent my entire vacay with them. After being married, I seldom stay long with my folks 'coz we need to divide our 'limited' time between my husband's family and mine. Well, this homecoming was different. I realized just how our house aged over the years. Along with it, I realized how we all aged. I can understand that my mother and my grandma can no longer maintain the place. Even I, cannot leave everything to my brother. The house has now gone too big for the three of them. I remembered how our place was once filled with the presence of everyone. All the memories came crashing down one night, while I was staring at the ceiling, not moving a muscle to try to sleep...
The memories of my father being alive watching his favorite PBA games
on his favorite spot in the living room...
my mother helping my grandma cook in the kitchen...
my three siblings busy doing their own things...
and those times when my niece and nephews were all over the place...
Those were the days when our house was filled with noises, laughters and non-stop chit-chats! Those memories were priceless, brought tears to my eyes...
Knowing that I can no longer live the past, I tried my best to let my family feel my presence during those 2 weeks. I cooked when I could. At least, for a moment, I tweaked the wrinkled faces of my mom and grandma and brought those familiar smiles again. The smiles hinted how their faces looked like when they were younger and when our home was livelier. Maybe, things will be different when we're all home. Maybe, in a way, we can stop being sooo busy growing up when our folks were all left growing old. I know I wanted to be there for them... physically... being there for them. Now, this is our motivation to finalize our plans and be home to reunite with our families for good. I hope it will be soon. No matter how great our achievements are, no matter how far we've travelled, at the end of the day, we all want to be HOME.
