a memorable mother's day

tuesday was our early celebration of mother's day, since mom flew out to holland today. i really wanted to just spend some quality time with her - no disruptions, no expectations - just time together.

10am - dimsum at the place where LD is located...copious amounts of food consumed. geoduck congee (man, my mom is BLING when i'm treating), steamed pea sprouts, ha gowr, deep fried fish fillets, tsa leung...and of course, we had to "da pao" quite a bit.
11:30am - off to the optical centre to get my new prada glasses courtesy of the WCB (if you do not know already, feel free to ask me about my garbage bin incident)
11:45 - guy said that it'll take about an hour to get them edged...

i lose track of time here...

we then proceeded to run a few errands (which, in my mom's world, means visiting a number of her friends at a number of locations)...i had to help her carry this huge box of detergent for one of her clients...and nodded my head more than a few times when i was forced to chat with a few "aunties". mom then dragged me to this new oil painting store that just opened beside alderbridge tim hortons, so that i can buy her a painting. and so we looked and looked, and finally found something to her taste. (well, i chose it...she made me cuz she says i'm the "artistic" one of the family). it's kinda funny...i've never heard my mom so proud of me...even though she still tells my embarrassing stories to random strangers (usually it's that one proverbial "difficult birth" story). i know this may be weird to discuss, but my mom has never been one to compliment. rarely was i deemed as "hao sun" or "gwai"...the most i ever really got was "she can write", which is perhaps a subtle diss in the chinese world of parenting. i guess that's why when she proudly introduces me to her friends now, as her "hao sun and chong ming" daughter, i feel proud too...and happy.

after buying the painting, we headed back to the optical centre, picked up my glasses, and she treated me to some "tofu flower" at central square. we used to go there a lot....so...it was definitely nostalgic. actually, anytime i eat with mom, it's nostalgic...i guess cuz so many of our memories growing up were tied with food.

and that's where our day ended...simple, but lovely. perhaps, for once in a long time, we're really embarking on a journey to understand each other more. no matter how much has changed, she is still my mom, and we love each other. we break, we cry, but we also cope. we mourn for what's been lost, but we also celebrate what's been gained.