There is time in ones life when one is faced with a defining moment in which life pauses and what in front of you slows to a stop. Its only a fraction of a second but within that second is wealth of possibilities, hope and relief. For me that was this last Friday when the Masilamani/Morlock family and some friends had the first "real" dinner where we were the preparers as well as the eaters and cleaners. Friday started out with some friends from Starbucks, (ol' coworkers of mine) Etta and Heather come over to watch a Hindi film (Paranitha) and then dinner with the family. Heather and Etta were such troopers as they witnessed the chaos that was in the kitchen as we started PREParing the dinner at 7 p.m...and dinner was at 8. (what? Indians always start late...its a known fact
!). Elizabeth and Nathaniel came over around 7-7:30. Elizabeth made this amazing chocolate pastry thing...i have no idea what it was called but she learned it in cooking class...(who said you never learn anything in high school?) and of course her specialty...brownies. I made bow tie pasta and heated marinara and Alfredo sauce. Prianthi had work so did not start helping until the end of the cooking. S
he set the table and helped with the chicken. In the end there was bow tie pasta, sauce, asparagus (which was only eaten by Pants and I) mashed potatoes (though it was very dry...i made it is all i can say in its defense) rosemary Italian bread and salad (that is all i can remember one week after it happened so bear with me).The dinner was great. My friends got to partake in this grand gesture as this was officially our first 3rd generation meal solo...no parents or grandparents. this in a way was a glimpse into what it could be like when we are much older and having family get-togethers, of our own, especially when our parents are not around anymore (unfortunate as that sounds, its bound to happen...its part of life right?). It was nice having all of us together, especially my brother and sister as I don't get to eat with them often, its usually my brother upstairs eating (cause he is doing other things, or sister and I have work so is not home for dinner...it was just nice to all be together even if it was for one night. After arguing over who was going to do the dishes and having some dessert, I got to sit outside with my friends and just chat bout ol' times and new...didn't realize how much i truly missed that, the conversation with others. Not that i don't talk with my siblings or cousins, its just that its a different part of my life that i was so used to having as a constant (sometimes more-so than others) and to hav
e it gone for so long really left a whole inside me...I think its 
something that will always be there...hollow(but that is for another time, another blog). Sitting back watching, while my siblings did the dishes and everyone sitting to watch the favorite genre of this house...gruesome horror films (I'm not so much a fan...but i tolerate it from time to time) I realized that ya we can do this...yes there is much needed practice (especially for me as i couldn't cook for crap) but this is something that i hope we do often. As close as we are as cousins and siblings i know there will be a time (and there WILL be a time) when we will all move out of our homes and start our own chapters in careers and lives and the scary thing i realized was that we really haven't been separated that much. i mean For a while we were living on different sides of California (we: Norcal; Elizabeth and Nathaniel: Socal) and then we moved here and they moved to Arizona but we were always in contact with each other, whether it was family trips up to Arizona or down here to Grand terrace, Xmas, summer you name it it was done. Then they moved back down here and ever since then we have seen them practically every week (if not everyday). Now as older kids i think i have really got to bond with them and come to appreciate them not only as people but as cousins...in fact i see them as my second "sibling
s" since I have shared a lot with them as I do my first siblings, and lets not get started on my own siblings...we are a crazy bunch of kids who seem to not really have anything in common but i think they understand me and i them (though i still will be confused of what really goes on in their head) and I'm so proud of how they have grown up even if it is never really shown...i don't have to show it...they are my flesh and blood i will always be proud of them...okay now starting to turn into a tearjerker and getting way off topic...basically what I'm saying is that eventually we will move out of this safe haven we call home and start our lives and we most likely will not be neighbors (at least for a while) and so these moments are very precious and hard to come by. These small get-togethers helps develops us adults, working out what works and what doesn't; taking the time to appreciate each others' company. It gives as the opportunity to eat and be merry together. I believe in the moment we don't comprehend what is occuring in terms of how its defining us but its there, these defining moments as adults...as the continuing line of Masilamani/Morlock family...and boy what a family it is =) As the moment passes, and everything unpauses one has to smile cause the event is so small on the timeline that is our lives and yet it is so very significant that one can only hope and look forward to the many possibilities that come with it.
