A Family Fourth

Oh, we live so far away. Way too far away. Much too far away. Our family vacation this summer was spent back in the Nebraska at my family's reunion. The Little Nguyens were able to spend some quality time with Grandpa and Grandma B. before all of the aunts, uncles and cousins arrived. They loved climbing in Grandma's trees, helping to push Grandpa's wheelchair, and spending time in the neighborhood I grew up in. All of it was so heartwarming to watch.

Without a doubt, the highlight of our trip was the 4th of July. Although not as permissive as other surrounding states, Nebraska does allow a lot of fantastic explosives! The brothers-in-law all pooled their resources and assembled quite a collection of incendiary devices. It was an amazing display of fireworks! The Little Nguyens held their first sparklers and helped make sure the "fires" were put out (with the help of squirt guns!). This, of course, was a perfect job for the little firemen in our family! As if on cue, an ice cream truck rounded the corner of our street right in the middle of our fireworks display. How Norman Rockwell! It's tinkly tunes evoked such memories for me. As a young girl, I would run for the front closet when I heard that music, searching frantically for the dish of coins my dad kept there for such frosty visits. Staring at the white truck with the ice cream cone on top, I was craving an orange creamsicle, but, alas, settled for drips from the Littlest Nguyen's bomb pop. After several dousings with the garden hose and more than a few squirts from each other's water guns, the Little Nguyens went through three costume changes that evening. Periodically, I would kiss or hug them, and they smelled grassy and warm, the way I imagined I did as a child after games of hide-and-seek on warm summer evenings. My children running around in the yard where I spent my own childhood, feeling Mom's cool grass between their toes, enjoying the simple things in life...that was amazing.

During our visit, so much time was spent around our family's kitchen table. That always seems to be where we end up! I was in heaven there, drinking Vodka Ginger Lemonade with my sisters, listening to the brothers-in-law talk and laugh while they played cards, preparing some scrumptious treats, and watching the Little Nguyens run around with their cousins. Finding what I wanted in life hasn't been easy for me. In order to find what would ultimately make me happy, I had to leave the places and the people I loved so much. God gave me the courage to go in a direction that was unclear to me, and I am thankful for the strength He granted me to do that. The rewards were great. He led me to such a wonderful man, someone who appreciates family, and who wants to teach our Little Nguyens in the same way. I am grateful that He allows me to bring my Three Nguyens back often to those I love dearly, to enjoy such moments with them.

I can't imagine ever being happy in a small family. It's not a way of life I want to know. For many, many years, I wondered why I had to be the youngest in a family of seven. I hated being "the baby" and really thought I would never outgrow being treated as one. But as I have grown older, I have come to realize what a truly outstanding job my parents did raising us, and what an amazing gift they gave us all. Each of us had a place in our family, from first to last, and they helped us to learn how to contribute in our own separate ways. My parents instilled their values in us, imparted their faith, and taught us to love. And besides all of that, they also managed to make us appreciate coming back. We are truly bound together. Mom and Dad sacrificed a lot for us, and we did without a lot of fancy things. Somehow, though, those "missing" things were never really missed. Our parents have given us a most valuable gift: a sense of family. It is a gift we are now passing on to our children, one they already cherish. They love spending time with each other, and they love the togetherness of family as much as we do. No matter where we are or how far we go, it will always be what we long to come back to. It is what we trust and count on. It is what we live for.