Ah, The Holidays

This is truly my favorite time of the year. The people in the streets are nicer to each other. There’s a nice cold breeze in the air. The leaves are scattered all over the pavement. And the lines are long at the shopping malls and at the local Starbucks.
But, my most favorite thing about this season is being with family. The majority of Thanksgiving Day was spent in Vallejo with the Malabuyo clan. It was great seeing my aunts, uncles, and cousins. I didn’t realize how big the family has gotten. (Note: There were some folks who weren’t even there – Dee & the kids in particular, and Uncle Jesse and family, etc.) There were babies all over the place. In 2 more years, I believe the number of babies will double. Yikes! Pretty soon, either Auntie Jasmin would have to buy a bigger house, or we would have to rent the neighborhood community center for our annual shindigs. I wouldn’t be surprised that, in a few more years, we would have to wear nametags and the "who is that" phrase would pop up in conversations. Yeah, it can get rough pretty soon. I’m already having a hard time remembering the names of the babies.
In any event, I’m grateful to have these people in my life. Each and every one of them had a thing to do with shaping the man that I am now. And looking ahead in to the future, I hope this circle of family and friends would remain intact for years and years to come – yes, including Uncle Jupiter & Uncle Levi.
Jup (clap, clap) Jup (clap, clap) Jup (clap, clap)