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Monday, November 8, 2010

Mouth open story jump out...

"Telling stories is as basic to human beings as eating. More so, in fact, for while food makes us live, stories are what make our lives worth living." ~Richard Kearney

Caught your attention with that title didn't I? lol... it's apparently a Trini saying - I'd never heard it before last week. My uncle shared it in an email  response to one I'd sent. My family is made of storytellers I think. There are some who are able to weave words into songs or poems or stories and perhaps I'm one of them (or will one day grow to be).

It is my belief that in sharing our experiences and thoughts we also share our happiness and sorrows... we record our memories... we provide food for thought... and so this post is just that... a mini collection of memories old and new.

I went to the Divali Nagar last Wednesday all by myself. It is a combination of Indian cultural exhibitions and bazaar and is usually held in the week leading up to Divali here in Trinidad and Tobago. I can't remember when last I was there but it was sometime when I was still in school... secondary school? tertiary? I don't remember. What I do remember is that whenever we (my mum, my brother and I) would visit  we'd (my brother & I) get balloons. Helium-filled balloons in odd colours that we'd then tie on to our wrists. They had a purpose of course. I'm fairly short you see... (at 12 I was one of the tallest girls in my class - I didn't know at the time that that would be my final height) and my brother was also somewhat short (not having hit his growth spurt yet)... and so the balloons helped us to keep track of each other... We'd get separated in the throngs of ppl and then stop to look for a familiar balloon rising above the crowds... lol and so when I went by myself I missed it... there was no balloon to look for... except that I looked up at one point and saw one floating away. Perhaps some other pair of siblings had just lost their location markers? Perhaps some child had just grown tired of holding on to the ribbon. It was familiar and yet not and I found myself caught up in feelings of nostalgia as I wandered around by myself.

This weekend was Divali... we celebrated in a small way... just us at home and my brother's girlfriend. My brother cooked everything - quite obviously we've brought him up well - lol... Didn't have much to do besides organise house... My mum wasn't so well... She overexerts herself without realising it. Her doctor recommended that she do a session of chemo so we'll see how that goes... to do or not to do - that is her question. It hurts to see her so frail and sad-looking when I know what a vibrantly alive person she is. I ask myself if I could be as strong as she is if I were in her situation and I find that I have no answers. Who can say what they will and won't do in a situation unless they are placed in it? For now I know we're spending time in prayer... building up the healing vibes and such. Divali 2010... already come and gone.


peace,
Ren

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