Dinner and Little Houses

Last night I was at T's house. I met him there after he and his family had gone to church. His mom made this beef / noodle soup I really like so I was excited to join them for dinner.

T's oldest sister from California has been staying there of the past few weeks.  She is a little unsure about the whole gay thing and is not thrilled about T having a boyfriend.   Last night at dinner she sat next to me, just because it was the only seat left at the table. She basically ignored me for most of the meal.  Even though I know she speaks fluent English, I have never heard her say anything in English.  

At the end of the meal, T's parents left the table and T and the sisters I know well, switched to English and I joined in the conversation.  His older sister (the one who had been ignoring me) comment she agreed with what I had said.  I noticed the change.  Later, T told me his father told his sister I'm nice.  I thought that was pretty cool.  Maybe he was giving her permission to be nice to me.

Maybe there is hope after all.

After dinner T asked me to help him set his Christmas village under the tree.  I took the picture you see here last night.   Don't you think he has nice knees?  Anyway, he has little street lights, little trees, and little people that all needed to be placed in just the right spot.  We taped the street lamps to the floor.  We ran the power cords. We placed the little houses in the right order to make a little town.

I loved watching him.  He had a vision of what it should all look like. It was fun to watch him work it out in his head and then place everything in the right spot.  (The fact he is a little OCD adds to my amusement.). I know that he loved having me there with him too.  For a while, it was almost like it was our house and our tree.

But it wasn't. The evening came to a close and it was time for me to go.  I felt a little sad.  Actually, always feel a little sad when I have to leave him.  As we hugged good night, he noticed a tear, but just one.  I was not crying, but sometimes my emotions show more than I want them too.

I drove home and I knew he was waiting up for me to get there.  Making sure I made it home safely before going to sleep himself.  Even though I was home alone, I could feel his love.