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Well it’s late, so time to overshare a little. But tonight, with the help of a couple glasses of wine and one game of Monopoly, I regained a part of my mom tonight I didn’t even know I had lost. (1/?)
Not that we ever lost touch or anything, but life’s been tough on both of us since my grandmother past two years ago. Abuela was the glue that seemed to hold us all together, even in the end, and in a small family of 3 (plus a dog) you realize when the dinner table shrinks. (2/?)
With me going off to college 4 years ago and the death of my grandmother two years after that, we unknowingly began to live separate lives after 20-something years being inseparable. She was my best friend, and I hers, but time passed and quickly her own illnesses came. (3/?)
Unbeknownst to me, my visits home over breaks or free weekends when I could save up the money or find a ride became more and more about hospital visits, talking to her doctors, helping with loads of paperwork and insurance bull, legal issues, etc. (4/?)
All things I think any first-generation college student could relate to - it’s just the load we have to carry. But slowly over time that’s all it became. I would come, I’d sort out as much business as I could, and return to campus to my Poli-Sci and English classes. (5/?)
Things home worsened to the point where I took last semester off and it was nice to be home for longer than a few days, not since high school had that been the case. But it was strained. So much stress and worry with her health and finances or ANYTHING - it had changed us. (6/?)
We had this box of Monopoly and out of pure boredom of being locked in the house during this pandemic, a couple hours ago we decided to play a game. Some wine, some music, my dog napping on my feet - we just set it all up and sat down and played. (7/?)
I had forgotten how funny she was. How competitive and fiery she can be. She was so witty, so smart... did she just sneak a 20 from the bank? I don’t think I laughed harder at any point in my life more than I did tonight. I don’t think I’ve seen her laugh that hard either. (8/?)
I won. It was a good game, as all games of Monopoly are. It was frustrating as sh*t, as all games of Monopoly are lol. But I forgot what it was like to feel that after so long, to really just put aside the fact that there’s a fu*king pandemic out and just, well, be us. (9/?)
This thread is way longer than I intended, but the point is that yes, this pandemic is devastating. Thousands have died, millions have lost loved ones. But through that sadness I regained something i didn’t even know I lost. And I hope u all get to regain something too. (10/10)
