I have always wanted to write about my life from my country of birth, the Democratic Republic of Congo, to living in Uganda as a refugee and finally to my life in the United States. However, due to some circumstances, such as being busy at school and living in a different city than my family, I never got a chance to. Also, people remember things differently, so I wanted to write when my other family members were there so I could be as accurate as possible.
Now that my whole family is stuck together for who knows how long, I have started to write the story of our life. It has become one way for us to bond. My mom tells us stories about where and when my brothers and I were born and the things we used to like. I have written a lot about my life stories, but there is still a lot more to write. Although I am at home for 24 hours a day, there is still not enough time to write. So I have been making a conscious effort to bond with my family and write my life story.
My mom is still working so she is not at home a lot. However, one day we decided to have a dance party at our house for just our family members. My mom took a day off, and we arranged a playlist of our country’s songs so we could have fun, but still learn about our culture and history. We recorded the dance party to show it to future generations so they can see how it was in 2020.
Another family bonding thing we did was biking. We have always had bikes, but I have never been good at biking. This pandemic period has been an excellent time to learn, so my little sisters have been teaching me how to ride a bike. Although I am still not very good at it, I have learned a lot, and I cannot wait for the pandemic to end so I can ride outside of my neighborhood.
We have also been working out together. Zumba has become a family ritual. My family does Zumba in the evenings so that my mom can join us. It is my family’s work out now that we can not spend much time outside. Zumba has helped turn my sisters into my best friends. Now we have the same hobbies and spend all our time in the same place.
I have been writing all these experiences in my life story, and hopefully one day I will get to publish it. If you are bored of being at home because you have not been outside for a long time or have not had a chance to spend time with your friends, your family can become your friends. Use this pandemic period to bond with your family as you wait for the future together.