Spring Break

In elementary and middle school, I would spend Spring Breaks in my parent’s office in the backroom of their third floor Allstate building. For as long as I’ve known, my dad worked in the same building in the Richmond District of San Francisco, in between a Mexican owned grocery store, and a Chinese owned fish market. 

For the whole day, I would just sit in the back with a gameboy, homework, a tiny antenna TV, and some books. I wasn’t allowed to leave the back if my dad was seeing a client, so I spent a lot of time just napping and watching The Price is Right followed by different forms of Maury and Springer. 

My dad’s co-worker would take me to Gordo’s, a delicious Mexican spot, down the block. One of my favorite burritos in the city. Ed Valez, huge six foot+ man, who took me under his wing like I was his own son. He would take me to play basketball at the school nearby, or play video games with me in-between clients. Ed brought me to church, taught me Spanish, and even taught me how to drive (at least tried to). 

Those were simpler times. As I enter another “last” Spring Break, the second during a global pandemic, I’m reflecting on what life will look like ahead. Last year, Jessie and I had plans to go to Canada during Spring Break, we were supposed to leave on Friday and Canada shut down on Wednesday that week as I was frantically trying to figure out which AirBnb would take us, the answer was none. Fast forward to 2021, I am two months from graduating with a master’s degree. Looking back to that elementary school Casey sneaking coke from my dad’s break room, I would tell him to really appreciate the time of being young, and don’t rush to grow up. Enjoy the Spring Break little man, like all things, it’ll come to an end one day.