TheTrue Meaning of Family

In life, we come across certain people who we know we are blessed to have in our lives. Yay Nong was one of these people, and I feel so lucky to have known her. She was a person who was constantly smiling and laughing. Indeed, in so many pictures of her, she is smiling with unstrained joy. Always exuding kindness and warmth, she truly embraced the life with a positive and generous attitude. This in turn made those around her happier. 

 

Yay Nong was my grandmother’s sister. Though I knew Yay Nong since I was young, I had the opportunity to see her more frequently when I went to Thailand in 2009 to 2010. She would often come over to Yay Seenuan’s house to visit her sister. In the hot afternoons, I would often sit with Yay Seenuan, Yay Nong, Pa Taew, and Pa Noi in the downstairs room. We would buy iced drinks from a street vendor after eating lunch. Yay Nong would always be joking, never taking life too seriously. When we played cards with Yay Seenuan, Yay Nong was always eager to join. She would shout my name in a voice that had a hint of mirth behind it as she gave me advice, teased me, or praised me. She always cared about me, asking me questions and remembering anecdotes from when I was younger. I remember looking to her as an inspiration: she was someone who had the vigor to live life to the fullest, yet she also had the warmth to let me understand the true meaning of family.

 

I will always remember one day that, to me, captures Yay Nong’s essence. My aunt Pa Taew and I went to the plaza across the street from Yay Seenuan’s house. There was a fish spa demonstration, and Yay Nong came across us sitting with our pant legs rolled up with our feet in the water. Not one to miss out, she promptly smiled, hiked up her pants, and sat down. She exclaimed and chatted with us as the fish nibbled and tickled her feet. She was the first of us three to stand in the water and throw back her head laughing. Her laugh was contagious, and I can still see Yay Nong laughing and lighting up the room with her vitality and joy. 

 

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ภาพจาก Fish Spa