Life continues on....
I can't believe it has been over a week since I last posted. I need to get better at posting as I think of things because then they just slip by. My birthday was Sunday and it was a neutral day for me. Originally, the day was plans-free as I like it and I intended to go to my favorite natural store to buy something nice for myself. Instead, NT's youngest brother was competing in a music competition this weekend and we ended up going to see his performance. May be I should back up and start with Saturday....
Since I enjoy gathering my friends to celebrate my birthday, I planned a small party for Saturday. My friends from school, as well as here, were invited for homemade snacks and good conversation. This was already in the works when NT discovered his brother's competition was the same weekend. To make matters worse, his brother didn't know the exact time when he was performing until the evening before the party. Fortunately, his brother performed in the morning. We woke up too early for a Saturday and headed to the competition. We arrived in time and drank some coffee before going to watch.
We located the right room where his brother would play and then headed in. To our surprise, NT's mother was there. In order to understand I will attempt to explain the situation. NT has not had contact with his mother for several years. He chooses to not have her in his life because she was abusive with him and refuses to acknowledge her behavior towards him. She favored NT's younger brother over him and played them against each other. This caused NT great pain because he loves his brothers very much. His youngest brother still lives with her which saddens him but he knows his brother will be away from home soon. I have never met his mother and this turned out to be the first time.
The competition went well but nerves were high among all of the participants. NT's brother was quite surprised to see his whole family together and sadly I think this affected his performance. After he played, we watched the remaining competitors. Then we ended up sitting with his mother and brothers for a few hours. NT had some contact with his mother during this, but it was very limited. We left in the early afternoon to prepare for the party. I said good-bye to NT's mother and shared with her how much I loved her son. NT said good-bye to her too and then he hugged her. This was such an intense moment to witness. NT was very emotional after the entire experience and cried on the train ride out. I held him and attempted to help him process the day. He is still trying to figure out his feelings about seeing her.
We headed to the store to pick up ingredients for guacamole, salsa, and a cake. We ended up buying premade organic salsa because that was cheaper than if we had made it. We also got bread and brie and we served the brie warm at the party. NT bought the special ingredients for a yummy layer cake. It is his homeland's birthday tradition. He did such a great job and the cake was absolutely delicious.
The gathering was smaller than expected but also very nice and cosy. Everyone loved the food and we all enjoyed each other's company. Guests left late into the night and I went to bed exhausted. The next day (my birthday) we also went to the music competition (as mentioned earlier) because his brother performed in a quintet for this round. NT wanted to go and I wanted to support him with this. We ended up bringing two of our friends and we headed to the competition again. This round was actually neater and the music was fun to hear. I was nervous about NT's mom but we ended up not spending any time with her. We saw the competition and then we headed home. I was not feeling great and my body started to be sick. We left the competition and went to find something to eat but we couldn't find any reasonably priced place so NT offered to make my birthday dinner. We went to the store and found the perfect ingredients for a nice dinner. NT made me a rice dish with ginger and vegetables with coconut milk. We ended up eating it by candlelight in bed because by then I was definitely sick.
I didn't get to talk to my family/friends or see them (via webcam) on my birthday. I was on-line but missed them. This made me very sad because I love to see my family and this is my first birthday in 27 years I am not near them. I didn't even get to hear any of their voices which is what I needed more than anything. I did receive a poem from my Dad though and that was so sweet. It made me cry and remember how he wrote me poems when I was a little girl. I posted it here for everyone to read:
My little girl
Her life in a wirl
Setted out on her own
But never alone
May your day be a happy one
Filled with more brightness than the morning Sun
May all your wishes come true
Like the love in my heart flowing to you
Receiving this washed everything away and made me realize how much I am loved.
Thanks to
belenen for making this beautiful icon! I truly feel I am glowing.
Since I enjoy gathering my friends to celebrate my birthday, I planned a small party for Saturday. My friends from school, as well as here, were invited for homemade snacks and good conversation. This was already in the works when NT discovered his brother's competition was the same weekend. To make matters worse, his brother didn't know the exact time when he was performing until the evening before the party. Fortunately, his brother performed in the morning. We woke up too early for a Saturday and headed to the competition. We arrived in time and drank some coffee before going to watch.
We located the right room where his brother would play and then headed in. To our surprise, NT's mother was there. In order to understand I will attempt to explain the situation. NT has not had contact with his mother for several years. He chooses to not have her in his life because she was abusive with him and refuses to acknowledge her behavior towards him. She favored NT's younger brother over him and played them against each other. This caused NT great pain because he loves his brothers very much. His youngest brother still lives with her which saddens him but he knows his brother will be away from home soon. I have never met his mother and this turned out to be the first time.
The competition went well but nerves were high among all of the participants. NT's brother was quite surprised to see his whole family together and sadly I think this affected his performance. After he played, we watched the remaining competitors. Then we ended up sitting with his mother and brothers for a few hours. NT had some contact with his mother during this, but it was very limited. We left in the early afternoon to prepare for the party. I said good-bye to NT's mother and shared with her how much I loved her son. NT said good-bye to her too and then he hugged her. This was such an intense moment to witness. NT was very emotional after the entire experience and cried on the train ride out. I held him and attempted to help him process the day. He is still trying to figure out his feelings about seeing her.
We headed to the store to pick up ingredients for guacamole, salsa, and a cake. We ended up buying premade organic salsa because that was cheaper than if we had made it. We also got bread and brie and we served the brie warm at the party. NT bought the special ingredients for a yummy layer cake. It is his homeland's birthday tradition. He did such a great job and the cake was absolutely delicious.
The gathering was smaller than expected but also very nice and cosy. Everyone loved the food and we all enjoyed each other's company. Guests left late into the night and I went to bed exhausted. The next day (my birthday) we also went to the music competition (as mentioned earlier) because his brother performed in a quintet for this round. NT wanted to go and I wanted to support him with this. We ended up bringing two of our friends and we headed to the competition again. This round was actually neater and the music was fun to hear. I was nervous about NT's mom but we ended up not spending any time with her. We saw the competition and then we headed home. I was not feeling great and my body started to be sick. We left the competition and went to find something to eat but we couldn't find any reasonably priced place so NT offered to make my birthday dinner. We went to the store and found the perfect ingredients for a nice dinner. NT made me a rice dish with ginger and vegetables with coconut milk. We ended up eating it by candlelight in bed because by then I was definitely sick.
I didn't get to talk to my family/friends or see them (via webcam) on my birthday. I was on-line but missed them. This made me very sad because I love to see my family and this is my first birthday in 27 years I am not near them. I didn't even get to hear any of their voices which is what I needed more than anything. I did receive a poem from my Dad though and that was so sweet. It made me cry and remember how he wrote me poems when I was a little girl. I posted it here for everyone to read:
My little girl
Her life in a wirl
Setted out on her own
But never alone
May your day be a happy one
Filled with more brightness than the morning Sun
May all your wishes come true
Like the love in my heart flowing to you
Receiving this washed everything away and made me realize how much I am loved.
Thanks to
belenen for making this beautiful icon! I truly feel I am glowing.