I can't help but giggle when I think about growing up with my cousins. We were friends most of the time, but tempers could flare and we could be on non-speaking terms for a week or two. Back then, that was a long time to pass.
I have many sibling stories to tell and probably have just as many cousin stories to tell. That's because our family is huge. When we get together for a family reunion, the time is short but very precious. We love each other, and Facebook keeps us connected in such an important way. If I could say so myself, the silver lining in Facebook is that it keeps me in contact with my cousins.
I can't clearly recall the first cousins I met. Most of them are from my dad's side. The place where I first met cousins was probably in Bolinao, Pangasinan, Philippines, where I was born. However, I am closest to my cousins born here in the United States. If I hear the word "cousin," I immediately think of Carol, Glory, and Wings. These are My Cousins Three. Carol and Glory are the daughters of my Auntie Len, one of my dad's sisters. Wings is the daughter of my Uncle Anding, one of my dad's brothers.
Carol
Carol and Glory are twins. I believe Carol is older by 5 minutes. Thus, it makes sense that she seems more protective of her sister. I remember that Carol was capable of kicking anyone's ass who messed with her sister. I met them for the first time in the Philippines. I was probably 3 or 4. I recall only one moment in their presence in the Philippines. I knew they were somehow important because they came from the United States, and they looked rich. They were both wearing dresses. I can't forget the situation because it was very comical. Carol was playing around running back and forth in front of our grandfather's house, skipping over a puddle that had formed on the concrete ground. My aunt and uncle told her to stay still, but she kept playing around. Then she slipped and fell on the puddle. It was funny to witness this because I thought she would cry. Instead, she put on this expressionless face and hid her wet behind from her parents. She did not want to get into trouble. I smiled to myself, having witnessed what nobody else saw and thinking about ratting her out. But I didn't.
The grownup version of our relationship is that Carol and I share secrets and enjoy hanging out and going to dinner and having a few drinks and playing mahjong and watching sports and going to baseball games and traveling to New Orleans and bowling and talking about our careers and our children and missing her parents and my dad and running the Wharf to Wharf and so on. I can see us growing old and doing the same things. I do plan to bowl until I'm dead!
Glory
My cousin Glory is different. She was only really a blur in the Philippines because I am pretty sure she wasn't the one who fell on the puddle. When we were little and growing up in the United States, I remember thinking how smart she was and that she could really talk up a storm and tell stories. It really is amazing that she knows multiple Filipino dialects, and I don't really know one. With respect to the dialect I was born into - Bolinao - the extent of my vocabulary is that of a 5-year-old because that's when I left the Philippines and started to learn English here. Glory interestingly speaks Bolinao fluently. She also speaks Tagalog fluently. Amazing!
The grownup version of our relationship is that Glory has the best party house to hang out at, and we both love to do karaoke. We also run the Wharf to Wharf and hang out and go to dinner and have a few drinks (well Glory doesn't drink as much as Carol and I do) and talk about our careers and our children and missing her parents and my dad and feel that life can be tough and giggle about the goofy things we did when we were little and so on. I can see us growing old and doing the same things. I do plan to karaoke until I'm dead!
Wings
My cousin Rowena, or Wings as we call her, is younger by about 4 years. I remember meeting her here in the United States when the families would get together for parties. I remember that they lived in Milpitas, and getting to their townhouse seemed like such a long, long way. Yes, when you're little, traveling from Mountain View to Milpitas by car could be a dreadfully long time. "Are we there yet?" Wings always seemed to be in the background because she was too little to play with our age group of cousins. She usually played with her brother Archie or our other cousins George and Ping (Chris). I remember additional other cousins more than I remember Wings when we were growing up. But how could I have missed out on her goofiness?
The grownup version of our relationship is that Wings is the goofiest cousin I have. She can be funny even sans alcohol. Most of the time, we think she is drunk. But that's Wings. She played mahjong for the first time recently, which is strange because all the other cousins have been playing it for years, decades even. We also run the Wharf to Wharf and hang out and go to dinner and have a few drinks and karaoke and dance and talk about our careers and our children and missing our dads and feel that life can be tough and so on. I can see us growing old and doing the same things. I do plan to be entertained by Wings' goofiness until I am dead!
My Cousins Three all have incredible husbands and wonderful children. They all have their issues and challenges I am sure. However, in general, life is good and God is good. I have many more cousins I haven't mentioned yet. There are Janet, Mely, Meggie, Mila, Alil, Teri, Val, Elvis, Anang, Johnny, Tinoy, Emang, Efren, Jun, Olet, Badong, Jack, Debbie, Lah, Dave, Lorna, Millette, Jessie, Jun, Eddie, Roland, Allen, Pinky, Diana, Erly, Roger, Ompong, Dempsey...I'm sure I left many out. There are some I probably have not met yet.
Thank goodness for Facebook and instant messaging and text messaging. Thank goodness for the proliferation of technology that keeps us cousins close even if we are in other parts of the world and/or our lives have kept us too busy and apart. It's just plain old goodness and a blessing that I have so many cousins, especially My Cousins Three.
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