Chapter 32- A Call

An intimate celebration in their moment of privacy occurred as their celebration for their success in solving rivalry among their three children. After several months, finally they were able to let them understand that rivalry would toxify their closeness being siblings. They were able to internalize the significance of humility as the mother of all virtues.

The saying, "United we stand, divided we fall." was both explicitly and implicitly demonstrated with them by using a single midrib and a hard broom. They also used the game, 'tug of war' as another example. They were also required to transfer a ball from West to East for at least 50 meters away from they picked it by just using a string without making the ball roll nor be thrown. All of these were discussed with the three children patiently after they had played them.

However, they would always play with them the same games every week end so they won't forget the lesson on unity, humility, loyalty, and honesty.

It was early morning of the next day when Ms. Peace and Sydney woke up to pee. It was still dark outside as it was only dawn. Sydney doted on his wife by carrying her from the bath room to their bed when his cell phone was ringing. He was unaffected by its sound as shown by putting down Ms. Peace on their bed slowly and he did the covering of the quilt to her body up to her shoulder.

After doing so, the ringing of his mobile phone hasn't stopped yet so he accepted the call. It was a call from his younger brother from his birth country.

"Brother, our parents requested you and your family to be with them even for a month."

"I'm happy to hear it. Rest assured that we'd be applying for a passport for my wife and my three children."

"Does it mean that you had no plan visiting us here in U. S. had our parents didn't request you all to come?"

"Well, not that I had no plan. It was just because we're so caught up with our daily activities as a family."

Then Sydney promised, "Don't worry about it we'll make it up for all of you when we arrive there."

"Okay, brother. They would be glad to hear a positive news from me about you and your family. Bye... for now"

"Anytime. Take good care of our parents for us." Then he hung up.

"It seems that we would be very busy starting Monday." Ms. Peace told him sleepily.

"Yeah. Let us sleep more to regain our energy." Sydney kissed her gently on his forehead before hugging her tightly under the blanket.

They were forced to wake up with the loud knocking on their bedroom's door. The sun rays was so glaring as it entered their bedroom through the glass window with a very thin printed curtain. Ms. Peace realized that it was almost eight in the morning.

"We're coming down after taking a bath. You disturbed our sleep." Ms. Peace told the knocker without opening the door.

She went to the bathroom, brushed her teeth before cleaning herself thoroughly by soaking herself in the bath tub with warm water. She was planning to wake her husband after she was done. But her plan was not realized as Sydney joined her inside the tub.

As they were always busy, they seldom had this chance to soak in the tub together. No wonder, an exercise between them that happened last night was again reviewed in the privacy of their bathroom. So, the supposedly forty five minutes soaking was extended to more than an hour including their rinsing beneath the shower stand.

With only in their robes and Ms. Peace had still a towel wrapped her long straight silky black hair, they went down for their breakfast. After almost four months, this was the only time that they spent some moments together as husband and wife. Most of the time, they were with their three kids. They had almost forgotten the sweet nothings that they were exchanging for each other.

Without spoken words, they were able to talk through their eyes that they had to feed each other while they were the only two of them at their dining table. Only the dining room witnessed their silent moment, feeding each other, putting foods in each other's plate smiling and kissing to thank one another.

They were so sweet like a newly married couple just the way they were many years ago. The twinkling in their eyes were enough to tell that the magical chemistry that gave them sparks were still blazing hotly.

When they were done eating, they washed the dishes while having their conversation about the call he received at dawn a while ago from his brother. They agreed that while Ms. Peace was going to prepare for the needed documents for the passport, Sydney was going to inform them about the schedule when they're going to the Nbi-National Bureau Invistigation, photo shop for picture taking, and DFA-Department of Foreign Affair.

The husband and wife agreed that Monday was not a good day to ask their children be absent from the school. They decided to start applying for their passport the next two days, Tuesday and Wednesday.

Thanks to updated technology that they were able to be done with the NBI clearance and picture taking. The next day, they were among those in the queau at the DFA. They were about it before lunch. They had to wait for a certain number of working days before their passport would be released.

After two weeks they had to apply for his wife and children's visa. His being a natural born citizen in America made the application without a hitch. At the end of the month, they had scheduled their flight for USA.

Before buying their tickets, Sydney called his younger brother to inform him about their arrival.

As a result, when his parents were told that they would be arriving, they hired a cleaner to clean and redecorate the bedrooms where the children were going to occupy. Sydney and Ms. Peace would be staying in his usual bedroom. Only that the wall painted with light blue was changed to a very light yellow colour.

Across the bedroom of Sydney another bedroom for the children were located. The wall was also repainted with pink and white. Next bedroom to the girls' was a smaller room designated to the male child of Sydney. It was also freshly repainted with a very light green and white colours.

It was a day before their flight that Ms. Peace filed her one-month absence of leave from the office of one of the government departments where she was an employee. It was also the same day when they packed their clothes in each bags.

Sydney had a mixed emotion as after eighteen years he would be able to return to his own birth place. Tactfully, they wore their IBT/IST which they hid under their jacket or sweatshirt during their flight.

Boarded in an express airbus trip for Los Angeles, they arrived safe and sound. Sydney hired a cab to be able to be in his parents' home.

Everybody was excited as they would be together even for a very limited length of days. The children were oriented how to make up for the lost years when their grandparents were not with them.

Although, Sydney's parents were already old, still they were active and alert that was why the couple prepared all the dishes that they served on their dining table.

After eating they stayed in the assigned bedrooms to rest and sleep to discard their fatigue of their lengthy trip.

Missing his parents, Sydney rested for only an hour. Without disturbing his wife and his children he helped his parents cooked the food for their sumptuous lunch. After so many years, he would once again be eating his favorite dishes that his parents would cook for him.

He was overwhelmed with joy helping his old parents in cooking. While cooking, they were engaged in a conversation about his livelihood resources in the country of his wife. He was oblige to tell them when his parents asked him why he never touched the money that they were sending him.

It was also that time when he learned of the money that they were sending him despite telling them not to do so when his inventions hit the market internationally.

Suddenly, he remembered his old Atm card that was untouched in his wallet. Had he remembered about it, he should had not gotten a new one and deposited some amount for their expenses on their stay in here in U. S.

It was exactly noon time when the younger sibling of Sydney arrived. So, together they ate their lunch with gusto. Adrianne May was so attentive putting some viands in her plate. She even fed her just the way how her kid brother and sister were giving to their grandfather and uncle. As a result, their grandparents and their uncle were impressed by their thoughtfulness.

Meanwhile, Sydney and Ms. Peace were also busy eating while observing the reactions of the people around them at the round dining table.

Trained at home, the siblings were the one who wash the dishes, cleaned both the kitchen and the dining room. When they were done, their grandparents were already taking their siesta while their uncle left home again to attend to his obligation in the business firm their family owned for several years now by which Sydney had founded delligently.