What did you say dear? My eldest sister, Norie, would ask earnestly whenever I started belting/shouting a song. It took me a while before I caught on that she was making fun of me, inferring that she couldn’t tell if I was singing or just talking to myself really, really loud. I must have been 10 or 11.
There was a flurry of activity that day. I was hanging around Norie’s room because she was moving. Nobody said where to. I assumed to Manila, where else? Another sister was taking over her room. I don’t know if it was my age, I always assumed everything’s fine.
After a while, I remember receiving a card from Norie. The card said, “Missing you!”. It had two penguins hugging. It had a very specific smell that I have since associated with things sent from the U.S..
