Day 24 of 32

Sabbath

Since we got back from Belmopan it has been a mad dash to organize everything for my granny's big birthday bash today. Although her birthday was yesterday, nothing terribly exciting happened other than my mother and others calling to wish granny a happy birthday.

Today, however, there will be a special church service for her followed by lunch with all the family members that have traveled from various parts of Belize for the occasion.

We had to be in church by 8:45 am because that is when Sabbath School begins. The program honoring granny started right after Sabbath School. There were a couple special music by two of the great-granddaughters (Gia and Endera). Another by Dr. Ranju, whom I have known since my days in Costa Rica, and she has become a part of our family. One of my granny's favorite pastors was brought in to say a few words of encouragement and to preach. Granny even sang with my aunts and gave a few words of thanks to all of us for being there with her.

Church ended at about 12:30. My aunt Stella lives a couple blocks from the church, so after the service a couple cousins and I started walking towards the house to get the party started!

After an amazing meal it was time for us to sing "Happy Birthday" and for granny to cut the cake. We even convinced my granny to bite into the cake...She is so funny. I truly believe that it is her sense of humor that has kept her alive and in pretty good health for these 94 years.

The rest of the afternoon was spent taking pictures and catching up with family and friends. Two contradicting feelings came over me as I looked across the group that had assembled. The first thought was "I am so old!". Some of my cousins had children that were almost teenagers now. The last time I saw them, they did not even have children yet. It was embarrassing to have to ask some of the kids who they were. The second feeling was "I am an adult, not a child". Although I am married and have a master's degree, most of my cousins see me as the fifteen-year old I was the last time I was there. My uncle Cleveland kept on referring to me as "the little girl", and my cousins would introduce me to people as "my little cousin".

I guess life in many ways stays the same no matter how much things change!