Before and After

I grew up in a nuclear family but was also somehow extended. There are only four of us in our family, my father, my mother, my younger brother, and me. It’s just a typical nuclear family setting but it becomes somehow extended because my cousins, uncle and unties are just our neighbors while my grandfather and grandmother’s house is just a few minutes walk away, and we are really close with one another that’s why when I think of home, I just do not think of my own family but I also think of them.

                I grew up with my cousins being my playmates and friends, my grandmother and grandfather were always the one who took care of us, their grandchildren, whenever our parents were not around, when they were in their workplaces. I have experienced a lot with my other two cousins (which are siblings), we were really close with each other. The three of us were the only kids in our family back then, but after a few years, from three to nine, and soon ten. 

                We celebrated every Christmas and New years together. We went to mall, zoo, and parks together. We went to Batangas (our province) together. We helped each other in almost everything. But time passed so fast that I didn’t even recognize how things started to change. As we grew older, our responsibilities increased and our priorities have changed. We used to go out together but it drastically changed. We started to drift apart from each other, although we are still neighbors it is not like the way it has used to be before. The imaginary distance was so unfathomable for me that I cannot even remember when we started to draw apart. We didn’t even celebrate last year’s Christmas together nor this year’s New Year. I only celebrate it with my family (mother, father, brother).

                I miss how things were like before. Yes, we still gather and celebrate together, but we were never complete. There were also times that others have conflict with one another that they no longer talk. Whenever I reminisce these, I felt happy because they were all good and happy memories but the pain always came like an aftershock because we were no longer like that. How I wish that I can do something about it , I wish time can bring back what was lost because it was also time, I guess, who took it away.

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SocSci 10 Z Group 4

Jaeger Dwayne Tamara, 

Mike Gyro Paras, 

Anthony Teofilo Jr., 

GiannaCapacia, 

Faye Mendoza, 

Jerome Gabriel