Reflective Post Week 14

Not a Traditional, but a Modern Family

After being on campus for about six months (minus three days that I spent in New York) I have to say that I was more anxious that anyone else to go back home or should I say, one of my homes. As much as I enjoy DC and the weather here, when you are spending almost all of your time with people you’ve just met a few months ago, you kind of tend to go a bit crazy.

When people ask me about my family, most of the times I describe it as “different” or “not traditional”. With my parents and younger brother currently living in Puerto Rico and my older two brothers in California (and me half way between both), this past Thanksgiving break I decided to spend it in Puerto Rico. When it comes to holidays and family dinners, we usually do not celebrate it like most traditional families. Come to think of it, I don’t even remember the last time my family and I had Thanksgiving dinners together . When we were younger, my brothers and I would always eat before my dad came back from work. When we moved to California, my dad stayed in Puerto Rico, so we would have Thanksgiving dinners without him.

While most families celebrate Thanksgiving by putting a pause in their crazy schedule and gathering to share a day together, most of the times someone in our family is missing. However, rather than coming together in a particular day, whenever our family is together, we make it up by going out to have big dinners together. Rather than enjoying traditional holidays, I guess I should just make the best of it whenever I get to see (either half or the whole) family. And I guess that’s what I’m thankful for this year, that my family is safe and happy even though we are apart.