The Siblings

On my birthday that evening,
I had to work late.

My little sister came,
surprising me with a big handmade card.

Inside she wrote of
how much I meant to her,
and how much she will miss me,
when I eventually get married and leave the house.

My little sister
is a very important part of my life,
ever since she was born.

She is like my very own daughter.

We are twelve years apart,
yet we have always been close.

I once dreamt
that we were in the midst of war,
and I couldn't find her anywhere.

I woke up with my pillow very damp that night,
and went over to her several times,
making sure she was alright.

I shared a room with my little sister,
we have a love-hate relationship.

As much as we both love
to have the room all by ourselves,
we would miss the presence of the other
whenever one is not around.

I once cat-fought with her
over the timing for lights-off.

Imagine me
fighting with someone twelve years younger.

As much as I dislike her bad temper,
I love her for the occasional sweetness.

I too have a love-hate relationship with my brother,
he is three years younger.

When we were younger,
we used to fight every day.

I vividly remember once,
he took a plastic piano and hit hard on my head.

I went to Mother,
who asked us to go fight it out if we dare.

I remembered how much I hated my brother,
I felt he was much more loved because of his gender.

There were times I loved him too,
I once used up all my pocket money to buy him
a pair of barbie doll's shoes.

As we grow older,
my brother has been a pillar of support,
whenever I could not take it anymore.

He plays dual role,
a pest and a clown whenever he tries to irritate us;
and a source of strength and objectivity
whenever we needed it.

He audaciously took off for Melbourne on my birthday,
and called back to send his "regrets" and wishes.

On this birthday,
I feel blessed with my siblings.

No matter how much we quarrel and fight,
at the end of the day,
we are still close as peas.

And I know this will be so,
even when we all have our own family eventually.

I love them,
and I know they me.