dogs need their teeth cleaned too! my random story...

I should be working. I have a butt load of stuff to do and I'm flying to California tomorrow for three days. Coming back Saturday and pretty much working until Thursday. UGH. But no one wants to hear about work and travel and how much I'm starting to loathe the 5-6 hour flight to California.

So on to my story...While we were in Sri Lanka, my husband was reading the book Running in the Family by Michael Ondaatje which is a memoir of the author's life growing up in Sri Lanka. I haven't read it yet but have glanced at a few pages and it got me thinking that there are SO many stories and so much history that I want to capture while I still can about my family, my heritage and Sri Lanka. Seriously, I found out that my great grandmother's name was Alice just the other day when I was talking to my mom. I don't even have a clue what my Dad's parents names are since they passed away when I was very little.

In a totally roundabout way things brings me to a story about my childhood that I completely forgot about. We were at my Dad's 70th birthday and one of his closest friends told my husband this story about how when I was four years old they caught me brushing my teeth in the bathroom and then using the same toothbrush to brush my dog's teeth. Apparently I'd watch my Mom brush my dogs teeth (she LOVED him and treated him like her baby) and so I thought I'd do the same. Just with my toothbrush because I'm gross. My husband was laughing and also not excited to ever kiss me again after that.

Although this isn't really the poignant story you might want to capture in a memoir these are the ones that keep me laughing and I want to remember all of them. At some point I'd love to put together a family tree but also just a collection of random family stories so they don't get lost somewhere down the line.

How do you keep track of family legacy, stories, etc.?

dogs need their teeth cleaned too! my random story...

God of War

I stayed up last night to finish reading God of War by Marisa Silver. It is a very beautifull written book - the kind that makes you feel exactly what the characters are feeling. The book is about a young boy who lives in the desert of California and how he struggles with growing up, responsibility to his family and his mentally ill brother. It left me feeling sad and very introspective about my own life and my siblings and parents.

I have three brothers and we have all become such different people with such different stories to be told. My oldest brother is almost a decade older than me. He left for college when I was only 8 years old so when I think back to my childhood he is this sort of distant figure that I idolized. He was much more like a father figure through my teen years, but as I get older the age gap is closing and we are on walking on the same level. He is the definition of the perfect son. He is a surgeon who makes a comfortable living for his wife and four children. He is the family rock, the go to person to deal with our many family crises. I used to almost resent his perfection because I felt I could never live up to it. Lately, I realize that he is burdened with a lot of responsibility that I do not envy.

Following perfection, is my brother who is dynamic, charismatic and very unpredicatable. His addictive personality led to problems with drugs which caused much turmoil for our family. He has recently turned his life around in the past two to three years and I admire his strength as he pushes through his daily struggles in the aftermath of his addiction. Especially in today's economic times, he is struggling without a bachelors degree and his past issues.

God of War