Memories of a Cousin

My cousin Simone is one of the most beautiful people I know. I don't just mean physically, though she is that (my roommate calls her "the gorgeous one"); she radiates life and does an incredible number of beautiful things. I haven't seen her in years, and I'm determined to change that soon, but for the moment I want to write some memories I have of my poetry-slamming, justice-enthused cousin.
-- I think I was probably about eight or nine, she was seven or eight, and her sister was five or six. The extended family was in Arizona (or maybe Cali?) for a family reunion, which we used to have a lot more than we do now. I was in Simmy and 'Rica's suite in the villa-thing we were staying in, and we decided it would be a fantastic idea to swing from the towel rack as a monkey bar. So Erica swung a bit, but needed our help, so then Simone and I took turns swinging and helping her. And then we decided wouldn't it be so FUN for all of us to swing at the same time. So we all hung on... and the rack fell off the wall. And then we got yelled at in spanish by the cleaning woman and then in english by Aunt Sheila.
--About five years after that we were at another family reunion in Laguna, and the cousins got the whole downstairs to ourselves (the entire extended family was renting a house for a month and then popping in and out). So we set up mattresses and a knitting station and whenever it was time to "sleep" or "rest," we'd go down there and dance around to music or quote Wicked or Pirates. Sometimes adults would walk by--- hold on. I have to describe something. So we were in the basement, but the ceiling of the basement was probably two feet off the ground, and we had these windows at the very top of the walls that were about a foot square and opened up to the outside, but pretty much all you saw were people's feet walking by.--- So when adults walked by, we'd put our faces by the window and say "Halloooo, Poppet" as creepily as we could. We also taught each other songs and soccer cheers and chants. And then when we'd go to the beach Haley and Erica and I would swim and Simone would sit in the sand and chant for us. To this day "Save the Day" and "Man! I feel like a Woman" are Cousin Songs.

There was no point to these memories. I just didn't want to forget them.