family first

the holiday season has arrived. in the nguyen household, this is a big deal. i mean BIG. you see, my dad is one of ten kids. and most of them live in indiana, which means a lot of people (spouses and my countless number of cousins included) cramming into one home.

it's been a tradition for all of my dad's side of the family to gather on christmas eve, eat an obsurd amount and combination of food (i'm talking egg rolls, holiday ham, pho, and sweet potato pie all on one table), and open presents at the stroke of midnight.

now that i'm older and not as consumed over what toys i'll be getting, i realized that i'm a part of a great, stable family situation. while other families need reunions to remember their relatives' names, i'm hearing the latest gossip about one of my cousins getting caught with a homemade bong that wasn't packed with weed, but with dried mint! i'm observing a talent show of all my little cousins playing instruments, doing magic tricks, or just being plain cute. i'm getting love advice from my uncle at the poker table...

...i'm holding hands in a prayer circle being reminded that our family is blessed.

while i wouldn't call myself the most religious of people, i know how fortunate our family is to be able to celebrate christmas the way we do.

about 30 years ago, during the vietnam war, my family escaped the destruction and horror of the war by fleeing on tiny motor boat just hoping to make it to a surrounding country. the chances of survival are slim to say the least. *check out the wikipedia article on "boat people" for a history lesson*

by luck or by the grace of god, my family made it to a refugee camp in thailand and was sponsored by an american surgeon to come and settle in the state of indiana.

through hard work and determination, everyone in my family has become successful in their own way in america, allowing the next generation (including myself) to never have to endure the pain and suffering they went through.

so while my little cousins eagerly ripped through wrapping paper to discover their new, high-tech toys, i now understood that for my family, christmas is not just about celebrating jesus' birthday, it's about seeing the look on their children's faces and thinking, "we made it."