My sister.
She is the older one and she is pretty cool. I consider her to be my best friend. She is my closest confidant and I know no matter what she will always have my back.
It was definitely not like that when we were children. At times I was sure I would end up killing her and have my face on the front page of the newspaper the next day with some weird headline like “Sister kills sister for a toy/piece of fruit/who gets more time with the grandmother”.
Our fights were so random and a little inspired by the WWF. Yes, we used to watch grown humans fight and think that’s a cool way to show anger/annoyance! We do not do that now. At all.
I was a skinny child and it was very easy for my strong sister to simply pick me up and toss me to the other side of a room like I was a ball of tissues. (She has always been freakily strong; she still is.) And, yes that has happened many times as much as my sister would like to deny that. Luckily none of them were physically or emotionally damaging for either of us. There was a sense of fun and bonding hidden under the layers of anger, stupidity, and childishness.
We were almost always the polar opposite in almost everything. I liked sports and to read and, she liked to, honestly I don’t remember much of what she liked as a child. I now know her well. We still are very different from each other but we have learned to adjust and adapt to each other.
Though we were not close we always had this bond where we knew to share our secrets with each other. I never could understand why we did that. We just trusted each other. We have always shared the darkest and deepest thoughts with each other and we just knew they were always going to be safe.
I think I can actually pinpoint that specific day/moment when I just knew how close I was to my sister.
We both were extremely close to our paternal grandmother. When I was 16 and my sister was 18, “Thamma” passed away. This was a huge shock for both of us. I think we dealt with that in our own ways. After about 2 years or so had passed since her passing away, one evening I suddenly felt like crying and I kept crying. I didn’t know why. It was rather late at night. I went to my sister’s room expecting she must have fallen asleep. But she was, sitting in one corner crying her heart out. It was as if we both realised at the same time what had happened. It just took us a few years to get there. I do not know if she remembers this specific night. But, it’s etched in my memory forever.
I knew then and there I definitely do not want to kill my sister (what a relief) and that she and I are meant to stick by each other forever.
We have both matured and grown so much in the last decade, a lot more than we both had hoped to. But, here we are. 2020 is our year, right didi?
Today is her day. It is her birthday. I wanted to let the world know (or the 30 odd people who will actually read this) how much I respect and love my sister. Professionally she inspires and challenges me and almost everyone she comes in contact with.
She is a really good listener and will patiently listen to you babble for hours. But, beware her favourite response is “Hmmm”. She is not being disrespectful, you just have to learn the “many depths and meanings of the hmmms”. Each has a different feeling attached to it. (I will soon release a guide book for those who would like to know more.)
She is extremely talented and maybe I am biased but I think she might be a genius as well.
I love the fact that recently she has been able to come out of her cocoon a lot more and now the world gets small glimpses of the sweet craziness that makes her unique. I am so happy that she is surrounded by people who love, respect and take care of her. Because she does the same for others.
She is the kind of person who will sacrifice for you without you ever knowing about it. If she sees someone needs something from her and she is able to get that done, she will just get that done, without question or asking for anything in return.
I had so much more I wanted to write but for today I think I will just say one thing. Since we were kids and even now, many people compare us because we are sister and it seems that’s a thing that people do. I have been told by many that my sister is better at many things etc etc. These kinds of remarks/observations never make me feel bad or sad or jealous or envious (apparently one is supposed to feel at least one of them, is what I am told). On the contrary, I feel so proud. She makes me proud all the time.
I wish that in this new year of your life, you get to fulfill all that you have set your mind to (I know you will anyway, see you at the finish line). You have taught me being ambitious isn’t a bad thing. You have taught me to always learn, re-learn and teach others what you learn, because even in teaching there is learning. You have taught me it’s never late to start anything or to believe in oneself.
You are a good sister but I think everyone who knows you can agree with me, you are a good human being.
Happy Birthday!