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Early Thanksgiving morning, Ana and her family arrived at Grandmother Robinson's house in the heart of town. Great Aunt Vanessa greeted them at the door with such well-known expressions as "My, how you've grown!" and "Who does she remind you of, John?" whilst pinching Jason and Ana's cheeks. Behind her, Grandmother Robinson seemed eager to rush everyone inside since "there was a chill in the air" and "for goodness' sake, they'd all catch their deaths of cold".
Ana surmised from the many cars parked along the street in front of the house that most of her relatives had already arrived. Mrs. Robinson led them into the parlor, where several of Ana's cousins, aunts, and uncles sat glued in front of the boob-tube. Ana saw that her cousins Brian and Patrick had come; she hadn't seen them in years, and now she was getting more than a little worried about the changes time had wrought.
Brian was her age and Patrick was a year younger, yet the last time they'd met, Ana had been considerably taller and larger. Now Brian was at least six inches taller than she was, and Patrick was a good two or three inches taller. She only hoped that they weren't planning on exacting revenge for all those times when she—
"Ana, dear, why don't you go and say 'hello' to the girls.." her mother suggested dismissively.
"Sure, mom. Fine." After exchanging the necessary pleasantries, the women left for the dining room to "visit", and the rest of the assembled company sat down in the living room to watch the last half of the football game.
Five minutes later, Grandmother Robinson came back into the room to get some dishes; a delicious aroma of baking pies and candied yams simmering on the stove wafted through the open door. Just then, Jason got up.
"Grandma, do you need any help in the kitchen?" He was doing his best to sound altruistic.
"Why, thank you, dear. I guess I could use an extra hand." As Mrs. Robinson left, Jason trotted behind like an obedient dog.
"Wow, I sure wish Jason would help like that at home." Ana heard her mother say before the living room door closed, wondering herself how much of a help Jason would really be. More likely, he'd "help" himself to the pie!
The football game ended early, leaving everyone hours with nothing to do until dinner, andJason returned to the living room, having eaten the leftover pie fillings as well as sampling all the dishes in the kitchen.
"So, did Grandma get wise to ya and turf you out on your stomach?" Ana asked sarcastically as Jason came into the living room. She, Brian, Patrick, and their cousins Teresa, Margot, and Eden were trying to play a game of Monopoly, which could take forever if played under ordinary circumstances, but these were no ordinary circumstances. During the fifteen minutes since football game had ended, they had all gone around the board only once. It had taken five minutes to stop the arguing over who got to control the deeds or the bank, and this was only accomplished when Uncle Phil had settled the dispute by charging over and saying that they'd better stop arguing or he'd throw the game out of the window.
However, reassurances from Aunt Jacqueline said that he was only kidding, and everyone had begun to argue again about whether or not Free Parking should have five hundred dollars under it and if taxes should also be put there. Since it was Grandma Robinson's house, none of their conflicting "house rules" applied.
Jason insisted then on being allowed to play (since he was the oldest cousin there, they could hardly refuse), but about an hour later, the game was canceled when Patrick picked the board up and flung the playing pieces everywhere. (No monopoly game lasted long if you playd with Patrick.) He refused to play if Margot and Eden were going to cheat and team up, joining their finances so as not to go bankrupt. Hardly surprising, Ana thought, since Patrick was winning at the time.
After another argument (instigated by the offended parties and those whose prospects were starting to look good until the game's untimely demise), Uncle Phil reappeared and provided a diversion by volunteering them all to set the dining room table.
After the usual grumbling, which allowed the cousins to forget their own arguments for a while and gripe against a common enemy--the work as well as Uncle Phil--Jason got out the plates from high in the dinnerware cabinet and handed them to the others to set on the table.
They finished and came back to the living room to find their parents happily chatting away in the chairs which they had previously occupied, and after a few low-pitched mutterings, Margot suggested they all go upstairs to talk and fill each other in on their lives since last Christmas.
Half an hour later, grandma Robinson came in to announce that dinner was ready. Jason was the first out of the door, leaping up and stopping mid-sentence, leaving his audience gaping, as, within seconds, he was thumping down the stairs. Great Aunt Vanessa gave the traditional prayer before the meal began. Sitting next to Jason, Ana could hear her brother groan just as Uncle Bob began to stand up. It was a well-known fact in the family that he was long-winded, and Ana began to ask herself why she had agreed to come to the same Thanksgiving Dinner where he would be (not that she had much choice).
It was bad enough at Christmas to listen to Uncle Bob's speeches, much less at a holiday entirely devoted to giving thanks. After a five minute prayer, the customary small talk during the serving of the plates began, and Ana wondered for the umpteenth time that day what Caera and Claudia were doing.
What Emma Left Behind Page 38