How to have meaningful gatherings

For families that truly gather once in a blue moon[like mine la], events such as Chinese New Year can be both a joy and pain. That's because we have to spent several hours in the company of virtually strangers and the conversation that flies over my head will belong to the adults. Well, I stand no longer for such insipid gatherings!

It's not that I don't have close cousins, I do! Or rather, I used to. Well, we just happened to find ourselves more grown up now and more distant. Coincidentally, a lot of my cousins are the quiet type. So Ms Han here decided to quit being an ass and just go all out to talk.

For starters, at my maternal grandfather's side, I kinda got everyone to start playing Bridge. 3 people learned bridge that day! My cold distant cousins were actually laughing and we started doing the usual crapping and joking. [An accomplishment, really!]

For my Dad's side on 'Chu Er', i realised for the first time that within the generation of cousins, there were 3 generations. [HUH?!] Firstly, there's the working and married cousins gen, followed by mine which is the tertiary education gen. The last of course are the little kids, whom have taken a particular liking to me as I'd like to believe as they keep asking me to play with them.

I know how most of us really hate the superficial questions like 'How are you?' etc. But I think such conversations can go far if you truly learn to be curious about your relatives. With the adults, the common question from me is, "So, are you happy with your job?" Given the really sincere way I ask it, I wonder if they're rattled by my question. I mean, I would be rattled by that question. To sidetrack abit...

I'm not very happy with my job. Correct that, I'm not happy with my students, their work and how half of a particular sec 4 class treat me. But upon further reflection, I found it was not my circumstances but it's really my attitude. [super philosophical right?] I can continue dreading my days and treat my students like trash, which, honestly, I'll be good at given my occasional snobbish attitude. Or I can rejoice in the day that the Lord has made and with all joy, give all that I can WHILE I can. Of cos la, easier said than done.

Back to CNY, I'm pretty happy about it this year. I should resolve to keep in better contact with my cousins. I mean, we're no longer kids, we don't have to rely upon our parents to set up the meetings for us. No matter what people say about friends, blood is always thicker than water. What's friends if you can't connect with your own cousins?