The Spirit of Giving

Finished.

Two thousand eight is now behind us, the end of the millennium's first decade. I have just returned from an unusual New Year's Celebration, arriving at a DC club with only ten minutes left of the year to prepare. The dj didn't even give the people fair warning, as only the observant Asians were paying attention to Ryan Seacrest on TV and the countdown to 2009. But surrounded by only a few friends and relatives, standing in a sea of colored skin, I was able to enjoy myself and the fact that a new year has started its imprint into our fragile little lives.

So what do I have to look forward to? Well, as per protocol, I rang in the new year single. As sad as it may look, this doesn't bother me. It's Valentines' Day that I worry about. Luckily, I have two months remaining in that endeavor. Must not get too hasty, though! The good thing about this is (and always a good thing) is that I still can afford me. I can make my single independent pay and enjoy what I want to do when I want at my own expense. For that, I am grateful. Sometimes, even when I think my sibling stares at me as if I was a giant walking dollar sign, I chuckle a bit.

Because I am still able to give to others, I still have an opportunity to send an easy dollar or two to the family I never get to see. We finally figured out the webcam here at home and to see all of their young faces (about 10 of them at a time it seems, most under the age of 5), I feel lucky that I can still contribute to my own relatives. Plus, this Christmas, my very own cousin Karen decided to start a mass email to all the Rigos-Rigos which will, in fact, make us even closer and aware of who we all are. Facebook (thank god for that) started most, but to figure out how our enormous family tree works, we now have the resources to find out more about people who are very far away from us.

So, with 2009 now here, my goal is to remain frugal as ever, thinking of others instead than myself, and to learn to let things take its course. I cannot control most things, so rather than not allowing others to learn for themselves, I must do the opposite. 2009 will also be the year of the "other"... in more ways than one.