grandma

in light of zelxyb's recent post, i've been thinking a lot about my maternal grandma in taiwan.

my mom went back to taiwan at the end of january so that she could celebrate chinese new year's with her mom and sister. my mom has called me a couple of times from taiwan, and it makes me nostalgic and think of my time in taiwan even more; especially with my grandma.

the last time i was back in taiwan was in 2003, for my paternal grandpa's funeral. it wasn't a very typical visit for us since we stayed in a hotel the whole time and ate out quite a bit. we weren't supposed to visit any relatives that were related to my grandpa as the taiwanese are superstitious and are afraid that you'll bring death to their family. this meant, i couldn't really experience taiwan in the way that i was used to.

so back to my grandma. when i think of my grandma, i really think of her laughing and cooking all the time. each meal (except for maybe breakfast) was a feast and always very tasty. she would cook at least 5 dishes for the family, and there would always be plenty of leftovers. when our meal was ready, we'd all sit down and eat, and both my grandparents would put food in my bowl and my brother's, telling us that that dish or piece of meat was particularly tasty so that we should have more. my grandma would always encourage us (the ones visiting from the u.s.) to eat more b/c we looked so thin. that is how taiwanese grandma's take care of you i guess. :)

i'd like to remember my grandma (and even my grandpa) in the way that i do before my last visit to taiwan. i think it still shocks me how quickly they age right now, and i'd like to remember the vibrant grandparents that were still moving around, cooking, riding mopeds. i think that's why i'm torn on going back to taiwan. on the one hand, i'd love to visit and go eat at the places i've gone to since i visited when i was a little girl, but on the other hand, i know it won't be the same taiwan b/c my (maternal) grandpa has just passed away and i don't think my grandma is cooking quite as much anymore.