The beautiful family!Saturday came with the baptizing of my sister’s son, Sam. Since I had been given the honourable role as his Godmother (I was quite stoked!) I had to carry him a lot and be part of the ceremony. Quite cool, but I got all nervous and stuff since I don’t have a lot of baby experience. It all went really well though and Sam, the little angel boy, didn’t shed as much as a tear. Phew!!
After the church ceremony we all went back to my sister’s new house (and what a house then! Here we are talking about something that could have been taken out of Wisteria lane in Desperate Housewives. It’s rather fantastic) and had some amazing food (all about fish over here to my great delight. I have been eating fish every day except for maybe 4 since I got here 3.5 weeks ago!), and then eventually cakes (oh gosh, big runs planned to burn that indulgence off… Fortunately I had crammed a quick run into Sat morning so I didn’t feel too guilty while I was stuffing myself). I got to meet my sister’s hubby-to-be’s family, which is a really nice bunch of people. He’s half Polish, half Swedish, which is kind of funny, since my other sister is about to marry a Danish dude and I am happy with my Finnish boyfriend. Mom sometimes ask us girls: “What’s wrong with Swedish guys?!” and we all just smile.
It was wonderful yet weird to see my second oldest sister all grown up, feeding her baby in their amazing dream house. Apple trees have already been planted in the garden. all the interior design was spot on (my sister’s got an eye for that sort of things), everything was extremely minimalistic, Swedish and stylish…. And if you just looked around quickly you could have never guessed there’s a baby living there too. Although as soon as you step into his gorgeous baby room you start to feel that this in fact is a family house. (A very stylish family house however….)
It kind of made me think, just being there and playing with baby Sam all day…. This life that my sister has made for herself and her family is so completely different to my life. Sure, she’s 5 years older than me, so it’s not like I need to feel stressed, but still. It’s such a different lifestyle. Such a different every-day life. Such a different way of thinking, of living. I felt a bit immature looking around at her grown-up life. However much I want to, I have had no idea how to plant apple trees. And. I don’t own one single piece of furniture. I’ve chosen a life in a suitcase, always moving around, sending a new address to a new town (and often new country) to my near and dear ones once a year… My life has advantages too, but at the same time, it is nothing like the stable life my sister is living. I wonder how long I will go being what I am now. I know that at some point I too, should settle down. And it is kind of inspiring when you see someone who is so close to you, that have managed to do it so well.
Whoa, some strange thoughts this morning. Well, I guess the point I am trying to make is that your get some and you lose some, no matter what kind of life you choose to live. Don’t get me wrong. I love my life in China but I love coming home too. I guess at some point (in the near future, which means the next 2-3 years or so) I need to make a decision about where I want to be and what I want to do with my life.
Nice huh?
Cutest bao bao ever!
Dream house
sis + hubby to be + me + my little brother (who's not that little anymore!) having a laugh
you have a nice family,
ReplyDeleteand as you mentioned you are not in a hurry to take such decision now, all the time you need to believe in your life style so you can enjoy it.
I think I must be secretly Swedish. I love that house.
ReplyDelete"should settle down"... probably won't happen til and if you WANT to settle down.
ReplyDeleteSounds like your sister has a great thing, but honestly, a huge majority of the world lives that life, its a common life in my opinion. I don't mean that in a negative way, but I also don't think you should view your life as lacking because you don't lead a common life. That was the vibe I got here. Your life seems so unique and adventurous and I hope you appreciate that too from time to time. I'm sure a lot of people living the common life feel the grass is greener in your furnitureless/lawnless world.
It's amazing how we do this to ourselves by, trying to analyze one siblings life to our own. Just remember the more stuff you have the more stuff you have to keep up & maintain. Every person who is older that I've ever talked to, reminisces about how great it was when they lived on a shoe string budget and only had a bath tub with ice in it to keep the food cold...yaddy yaddy yaddy etc. I think society puts too much placement on getting it all now instead of acquirering it in time.....like maybe with stuff that are memories of where you've been. Like in your home you might have a Chinese room & another room that mirrors the theme of other places you've been......mmmmm might be fun!
ReplyDeleteGod, I wish I had a big family like that. I am the only child in my family (I am looking at you, dear Chinese government!) so I always wonder what it feels like to have brothers and sisters.
ReplyDeletesocrate -yeah, I guess I am not in a hurry although when u see it all in front of you it kind of makes u want it
ReplyDeleteMichelle -I don't think u need to be a Swede to love that house.... ;)
Hopfrog -I guess I am a typical "the grass is always greener on the other side" type of person.. I always want what I don't have. Oh well. U r right though.. want to settle down and should isn't the same thing.
Pete -u r right. It is just as if good is never enough.
胡崧 -yeah I am really lucky to have 3 siblings... I still don't understand how my parents did it, but I am really happy they did!!
wow, I have friends that are only children and they don't want siblings. They said that they couldn't deal with not getting all the attention. They don't want attention shared. But I can tell you that having siblings is also tougher for parents. My brother and I used to make my mom cry because we fought so much.
ReplyDeleteLittle Sam is so adorable! And your sister's face is radiating with happiness. She looks fabulous in that lovely floral skirt.
ReplyDeleteWhile you are a little envious of your sister's stable family life, she might be envying your adventurous life at the same time.
It is natural that young people are more interested in exploring the world than settling down. But as one grows older, they will feel the desire to have a family and raise their kids. You'll have eight to ten years to go before the biological clock inside you propels you to slow down. A rule of thumb is that people are most fertile before age of 35. Just keep this in mind if you want to have babies.