It was the 31st of December, the day before New Year’s Day, the busiest day of the year. Most of the people walked and gathered around the market to buy all the things they needed before the year ended. There were people collecting fruits to complete the lucky basket, which was believed to give a prosperous New Year to each household that would have those.
Aside from collecting fruits, families would prepare ingredients for cooking glutinous rice cakes that are believed to give health and long life. Bella, who missed eating tupig, a popular native delicacy from the North, was busy wiping the banana leaves which would be used for wrapping the glutinous rice.
“Make sure the leaves are all clean,” Catherine said to her daughter. Catherine thought Bella had come home from abroad. Kara and Ke
