Home, Sweet Home? (2nd Draft)

“Julie!!! I wanna pee! Hurry up!I wanna pee! NOW!” The shout of little Jimmy wiped the smile off my face from my long-awaited peaceful dream. I got up in just a second and had my hair tied up. “Julie! Are you deaf? I must pee now! Come,” Jimmy shouted again. “Okay. Okay. I’m coming right over. Please don’t pee on the floor again,” I begged. After I grabbed my brown, worn sweater that my mom gave me when I left home four years ago, I Glanced at the mirror and saw a familiar face with dark circles that can hardly be covered by the long eyelashes. The tiny hole on the sweater that my rough hands reached put a smile on my face again. “Julie! Where’s my toothbrush?” someone scolded. Oh God! I stepped out of my 20 square feets paradise and there I was again- my everyday battlefield.

My day started with Jimmy’s pee on bed. After cleaning up the mess, I rushed to prepare for the first battle. There was no way that you could make a mistake for breakfast, unless you did not mind starting your day with curses arrowed towards you from all directions, or even came with toast crisps if you were lucky enough. Sometimes, I really wished I could have a supportive troop fighting the war together with me. Maybe to at least help me deal with the really boring coffee making would already make my day better. After getting the kids boarded the school coach, I shrugged my shoulders, took a deep breath and went to reserve some grains for the next warfare.

Doing the laundry work was the least dull task. Although the brand names appeared on the clothes tags were like some mysterious Martian code to me, by touching the smooth silky texture, I could tell that they were something very different from mine. The helmet and armor were sometimes too heavy and cold, there were times that Cinderella would dream for a carefree warm dress and hope to leave for the unbound palace for just a short while, even though deep inside she knew it very well that she wouldn’t be able to stay till 12.

The sudden rise of a Philipino classic ringtone had scared my head off. I took off the unfit silk dress without a thought. Blame for the malfunctioning iron, the last time I unintentionally worn Mom’s dress had put me on diet for two days. I still haven’t trained well enough for another Famine 30. I picked up my old-model Nokia cell phone and heard a familiar voice-it was my sister. She got me a piece of good news- our younger cousin just gave birth to a baby girl. I always think it is good to have a family and fill it with laughters of as many kids as my tummy can take. If i were to plan for my kids, I would not pack their schedule with all sorts of tutorial, sports, art, music (all you can name), out-of-classroom “interest” class. To me, being happy is easy. I do not need to be “successful” or recognized, singing and dancing with a guitar will satisfy me. Maybe that’s why I sometimes feel like i don’t belong here.

Our conversation ended with a top-down command, “Don’t knock on our family’s flat door with a pair of reddish swollen hands! Make sure you got enough plastic gloves!” The same tone of voice transmitted to your ears by different people really makes a difference in the message you received in your heart. It’s always good to have a family! I slowly put down the handy phone but surprisingly I found it as heavy as a dumbbell. After that, I tidied up all the washed clothes and got back to the battlefront, again.

(to be continued)