the last sunset by Inez Dumaop

my first memory

Rays of warm, yellow light fill our little room. It feels tight holding all three of us in there, just the way I like it. Our backs laid on the bed, the queen sized mattress reaching almost to the door. I’m stuck between the both of you, each side of me being pulled and snuggled by the two people I love the most. I feel warm. Happy. The tops of our heads are smushed together, resembling a star, as our feet stretch and wiggle to different edges of the world. This room, their faces. This is my whole world. We look up at the ceiling fan as if its the sun. The light too big and bright of my little eyes. Searching, sifting through the rays is your smiles, the crinkles of your eyes, and the soft echoes of our laughter. The room’s fuzzy, yellow glow, almost a sunset, burned flashes perpetually in my mind as a question of dream or reality. A mixture of both. A dream of our little family still together and the reality that it is only a memory. One of you got up to turn off the light so we could go to bed. My young, innocent heart filled to the brim with joy, I did not fight the sleepiness, I let it wash over me and tuck me in, and I let the sun kiss me goodnight as it set for the last time on the great, big love that filled the tiny room.

My name is Inez Dumaop. I am a storyteller and student. I have recently rekindled my love for writing when I took this creative writing class, and I want to keep tending to that fire. I am Filipino American, born in San Jose and raised partially there and partially here in Gilroy. My favorite pastimes include hanging out with my animals, my family and friends, and watching movies.