Joseph Trinidad | Longreads | June 16, 2026 | 5,165 words (18 minutes)
“The Cousin Returns” is a chapter from Lucky Creatures, a debut essay collection from Joseph Trinidad, published by Sarabande Books on June 16, 2026. This excerpt has been edited for style.
Kuya Gian from Wellington, New Zealand, 2023
If you’re coming from overseas, people will expect pasalubong, especially if, like me, you’ve been gone for almost 15 years. It has no direct English translation. Although some people use them, “souvenir” sounds too cheap, “gift” too shallow and transactional. In a sense, whatever you bring back is more of a remembrance than a souvenir, not a gift, as much as “I miss you” is not a greeting. It’s also a test of retention and growth: How well do you remember me and my tastes, how big is your wallet after all those years abroad? I think of it this way: Your partner waits for decades, raises your children alone, fends off suitors by weaving and unweaving their loom, then you return empty-handed, not even a box of Dunkin’ doughnuts from the airport, let alone a Louis Vuitton card holder. Don’t be like that; bring something back, something that tells the story of your journey. You don’t want to lie, but you also don’t want to undersell your hard work. Refrain from blowing up your image or larding up the contents of your bank account. Stop yourself from buying everyone an iPhone. There are complicating facts, casualties to your migration that even a lot of money cannot obstruct or forgive. Above all, a pasalubong is an apology for your absence, something for those who waited and prayed for your return.
