Wat da Wat?

I love Sunday morning brunch with the family, especially if I don’t have to prepare the brunch. My lovely wife just got back from the Philippines, and since she’s still in a jetlag mode and couldn’t sleep, she prepared a feast for the family. With the exception of the prodigal son, who is at work pulling a double shift, the family genius, the guy in the middle, smiley face, and CJ a.k.a. Sylar, are all present.

The best part of the Sunday morning brunch is not the food but the conversation. And as usuall the topics of conversation was all over the place. The person who gets the last point in from the previous topic usually controls the conversation.

We discussed a lot of important issues like:

1. Elvis never gave an anchor and always left the building before the show ends. This was the family genius’ topic. I have no idea how this got into the conversation.

2. There’s 3 things you have to do; travel the world, learn how to play an instrument, and learn a second language. They got this from one of their teachers. It sounds like a great advice to me. The children already know at least two languages and they are beginning to travel. So they are on their way to fulfilling this advice.

3. American hard core criminals will not last a day in Philippine prisons or with the Philippine Police. There’s a popular belief that the Philippine Police shoot the suspects first before firing off a warning shot. The children find this both very amusing and sad.

4. Who’s Daddy’s favorite? Smiley Face commented that I’m spoiling CJ (a.k.a. Sylar). The Guy In The Middle defended me by stating that Smiley Face also got most of the attention when she was the youngest. We all agreed that everything seems to even out in the scheme of things.

5. Rice Shortage. Since rice is a staple food for every Filipino household, this topic was important. I re-assured everyone that we are ok and that rice will always be present at the dinner table. The worse thing that could happen is that we will have spaghetti or burgers for dinner instead of good ole’ rice and whatever dish is prepared. The kiddies were relieved that we have a back-up plan just in case we run out of rice.

Ok, maybe the topics listed here were not really that important. However, what is important is that we are together and we had a conversation. The only downside to this Sunday brunch is that the Prodigal Son was not present. His work prevented him from sharing this moment with us.

I know soon the other children will also start missing meals and family gatherings. It’s just the way things work. But, at least I could hold on to this moment a little while longer. This trivial moment in time, no matter how insignificant it is, will contribute to the enduring bond of this family. And, it is in this moment, working their way through the insignificant chatter, my children’s fears, beliefs, hopes and dreams are usually revealed in their own majestic and magical way.

So as long as there’s bacon, eggs, and rice there’s no reason why Sunday brunch should not continue. If my wife and I consider the Sunday brunch is an intregal part of our family bonding, then we will have more trivial but insightful conversations like the ones listed above.