Overdue Vacation
I, myself, couldn't believe that I've let so many years passed before taking that flight home again. For four longs years, I haven't gotten home and the two months I've stayed in the province never seemed enough for the people back home.
We packed a lot for that vacation that we paid over a thousand bucks for the extra luggage. We got three balikbayan boxes and one big, heavy leather bag that needs to go home to the owner. Nope, those are not stuff we needed for the holiday. Those are stuff we no longer need here at home that needed disposal. It was like donating to the charity, you know. One of the boxes got old but still nice rattan placemats given by my brother-in-law a few years back, all our used clothing to be given out to my yaya's family, my maternity dresses which I am passing on to my sister hoping she'd have a new baby soon, a few pieces of the ukay-ukay stuff left behind from the first shipment, our working clothes and footwear, baby stuff, an inflatable pool and food.
The trip was smooth except that baby Joseph was fussy during the entire flight, probably due to cabin pressure. Thanks to my new Treo 650 that got his favorite Barney show which provided entertainment for a few minutes. It only took an hour and twenty minutes for the flight. Thanks to my sister who was able to borrow transportation from a friend, we got a nice ride home.
It was my first time to see mama's house which by the way, instantly got tiled because we were coming home. No, not for me but for baby Joseph. We were able to trick (not a very good term but that's what we really did) Mama Che to hasten the tile flooring, who in turn was able to get financial assistance from Papa Boy. It felt good to be "home".
The entire summer was spent rather simply. Most of the time we stayed home only, with the kids having fun time taking a dip and learning how to swim in the 10-foot diameter inflatable pool. Even my little boy and adults alike loves to swim in it. It's where Josh advanced his swimming skills.
It was also after four long years that I got to meet old friends. We had a few gatherings which somehow made me updated on how they were doing with their lives. Some still remain childless after years of marriage. Some had gotten married already. So much had change nonetheless I still felt the warmth of the same old, genuine friendship.
The reunion would not be perfect without the little disagreement we had with mom over her "precious" plants. There was a dispute whether to transfer the santol tree farther from the house, then the heated discussion to Lola Luz's cutting the Lansones tree. It made the vacation spicy, we were like a family, hahaha!
Well, it was my sister who got the first prize when it comes to events and highlights for that vacation.
