Safe and Sound

I began the new year with a little ritual which is "general cleaning"- although this time it was a bit more challenging because I was also assessing and fixing other things in the entire house- unclogging a sink, replacing light bulbs, putting new curtains and keeping things in order. Termites have really been chewing our ceiling and it looks like the wood panels are about to fall off, when a foreman assessed it he told me they needed to take down the whole thing and not just replace one section. My oh my.

As I cleaned my room I found some very delightful items- souvenirs I tucked away and forgot about, and get this- a photo of my barkada circa 1996! It became a conversation piece during our reunion over coffee. I also raided my closet once more to put away some items I haven't been using (the rule is, if the item was not worn in a month or so, it goes into storage). And just as I've been doing this, I realized it was also time to put away baggage from the past.

Last December, Nanay came home to visit for a few days. You see, last October during a particularly bad fight between my mother's and father's side of the family, they took Nanay away without even talking to me about it. I'm just glad now that Nanay and I had to talk and in her own words she expressed that she'd like to stay in her eldest daughter's household because she always have company (here, its usually her and the household help since I'm in school most of the time) and they cater to her needs when it comes to food. I don't really cook, and the helper's cooking is very basic, but now she gets to eat vegetables and fish cooked just the way she likes it- every time.

So after all those fights and confrontations and resentment, I think in their on way there came a resolution. It's hard to carry those things over to the new year. No more pointing fingers at whose fault was it, because it certainly took more than just a few people to bring about that mess. Maybe one day, things will return to normal, or maybe not. The important thing is the anger and resentment are gone, and it easier to forgive.

Whew, its just like cleaning under the bed- a nasty job, no doubt difficult and I'm unwilling to do it, but when its done, there's peace of mind... and cleanliness. (And no more dust mites!)