Family Gatherings

I try to put on my brightest smile,

I steady myself, bracing myself for the onslaught of questions.

.

"How are your classes right now?"

"Have you found the right person for you yet?"

"When are we going to meet this girlfriend of yours?"

"How's the fitness center, how are the facilities?"

"Now that you're not working right now, what are your goals, what are your next steps?"

.

Endlessly, unceasingly, the questions crash upon me,

one wave after another.

I skedaddle to my cousins,

My Refuge,

My Safe Place.

I spend some time massaging the back and shoulders of my grandparents.

.

Then after all of dinner's gone, the cake cut, dessert sitting and slowly digesting in our stomachs, food coma imminent,

The dishes rinsed and put into the dishwasher,

we say our goodbyes.

Until next time when we go through the process. All. Over. Again.