Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
I’m no longer in denial about being a youngin’ in my family. When a few of my younger, cuter cousins were born, I was still one of the oldest of that group.
link Christina Calloway
It got rough for a while, fighting for attention with songs and dances when all the babies had to do was blink.
But even those kids are now of legal drinking age and the cousins in my brother’s generation, or the 30- to 40-year-olds, have started their families.
Recently there have been a few new babies on my mother’s side of the family but without picking favorites, I will say I feel closest to my eldest niece.
Ayana was only 5 when her mother died in a car accident. My cousin Racquel had Ayana at 15, the first baby to be born from my generation of cousins.
I used to stand over her crib and whisper subliminal messages before she could even say words. I wanted it drilled in her head that I would be her favorite aunt.
She definitely took after her mother in that she’s wise for her age and mischievous.
Now that she’s approaching double digits, she’s about to hit a phase of her growth that’s one of the most difficult for parents; puberty.
It’s only right that my other cousins and I pitch in to make her the best young lady she can be. I don’t want any chance at a dream to be deferred because her mother is no longer here.
Christina Calloway writes for Clovis Media Inc.