By September arrived and Houston refused to acknowledge it. Still in the high 90s. The brisket schedule remains 4 AM start, noon finish. Some mornings I sit on the back porch with my coffee and watch the smoke curl upward and feel a kind of religious quiet that I don't talk about with anyone. I don't go to temple often, but smoke at 5 AM is its own kind of incense, and patience is its own kind of prayer.
Tyler called Tuesday at 11 PM. Jessica's water broke. Three weeks early. They were on the way to the hospital in Midland. I drove. Started at 12:15 AM, made Midland by 5:45 AM, walked into the hospital lobby with a thermos of Vietnamese coffee in one hand and a small bag of clothes in the other. Marcus was at the hospital with Jessica's sister, but Tyler needed his dad, and his dad needed to be there, and so I was there.
Jade Tran was born at 9:42 AM Wednesday September 17, 2025. Five pounds nine ounces. Small. Healthy. Loud. They put her in a slightly warmer room than usual because of the early arrival but she didn't need NICU. Tyler held her at noon. I held her at 1 PM. She had Jessica's nose and Tyler's eyebrows. She slept in my arms for forty minutes. I didn't move. Tyler came over and looked at me holding his daughter and his eyes filled and he didn't say anything because there was nothing to say. The third grandchild. The first granddaughter from Tyler's side. The chain holds.
Drove home Friday. Ten hours round trip total. Stopped at a Whataburger somewhere west of San Antonio and ate a No. 1 with cheese in the parking lot, watching trucks go past on I-10, thinking about Jade's small face. The food was just food. The drive was just driving. But I was a grandfather of three now. The math of a life. I called Mai from the parking lot. I told her. She said, "Now you're busy." I said, "Now I'm happy." She said, "Same thing."
I don’t think about food during moments like that. You’re holding five pounds nine ounces of a brand-new person and food is the last thing on your mind. But ten hours of driving will remind you that the body still has its own schedule, and somewhere on I-10 heading back toward Houston, I started thinking about what I would have put in the car if I’d had more than twenty minutes to pack. The answer, honestly, is something like this—something that requires no plates, no utensils, and no explanation. A snack mix you can reach for with one hand while the radio plays low and you replay the same forty minutes over and over again in your head.
M&M Snack Mix
Prep Time: 10 min | Cook Time: 0 min | Total Time: 10 min | Servings: 10
Ingredients
- 3 cups honey wheat pretzels
- 2 cups Corn Chex or Rice Chex cereal
- 1 1/2 cups salted peanuts or mixed nuts
- 1 1/2 cups M&M candies (plain or peanut)
- 1 cup Golden Grahams cereal or honey-flavored crackers
- 1/2 cup sunflower seeds (optional)
- 1/2 cup coconut flakes, lightly toasted (optional)
Instructions
- Combine dry ingredients. In a large mixing bowl, add the pretzels, Chex cereal, peanuts, Golden Grahams, and sunflower seeds if using. Toss gently to distribute evenly.
- Add M&Ms. Fold in the M&M candies last so they don’t crack or bleed color into the mix. If using toasted coconut, add it at this step as well.
- Taste and adjust. Sample a small handful. If you want more salt, add a light pinch of flaky sea salt over the top and toss once more. If you want more sweetness, add an extra 1/4 cup of M&Ms.
- Store or serve. Transfer to a large airtight container or divide into zip-top bags for road trip portions. Keeps at room temperature for up to 2 weeks—though it rarely lasts that long.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 310 | Protein: 7g | Fat: 14g | Carbs: 40g | Fiber: 2g | Sodium: 210mg