11 march.
This is my nephew Eli, back when he was just a month old, in November 2008. He’s much bigger now, and a big brother to boot. (Hi, Alia!) Eli and Alia live with my brother and his wife in Kobe, Japan; my brother does a slightly insane commute to Shanghai, where he works as an architect. They’re all coming back to the States next month, where I’ll finally get to meet wee Alia for the first time, and Eli, now a talkative toddler, and I can have long philosophical chats about what it’s like to be an older sibling. Though probably we’ll just talk about trucks.
I got word this morning from my brother (currently in Shanghai) that my sister-in-law, the kids, and her parents, are all safe and sound in Kobe following the catastrophic earthquake and subsequent tsunami off the northeastern coast of Japan late last night. I’m sending good thoughts and much hope to everyone over there who has been affected by this, and condolences to everyone who lost a loved one.
hong-an tran 