Sibling Affection: In Praise of the Birthday Boy

This piece is dedicated to my elder brother Andre, who celebrated his birthday yesterday. Sadly, I could not be with him, as we are separated by seas, continents, and ten time zones.


                    


Every child has a mentor, someone to whom she looks up and constantly seeks approval. For me, it was and remains Andre. The eldest among the three of us—we have a younger brother named John Paul—Andre is a wizard in everything he does.

He aced every subject effortlessly, particularly math, never having to enlist the aid of our parents.

He was easily the better piano player between the two of us, practicing regularly where I procrastinated shamelessly.

He was naturally adept at playing video games, from our first console Super Nintendo to its carefully chosen successor, the Sega Dreamcast.

He was extremely tech-savvy, ensuring we were early movers and had state-of-the-art technology long before anyone else did.

And boy did he know how to fashion slingshots and bows and arrows out of backyard tree branches and yarn that he’d weave himself. My feather-tipped arrow glided to victory in a sixth-grade Native-American culture day, thanks to Andre’s superior craftsmanship.

No doubt, it was not easy being the eldest. There was no one to guide him if he encountered any scholastic hurdles. He could only consult himself and his fountain of creativity, which fortunately flows without limit. 

I still recall how he taught me the Pythagorean Theorem when I was still years shy of algebra and advanced geometry. I in turn made it the subject of a class project and passed it on to the entire elementary school during a math field day. Everyone was dazzled with my precociousness, but if only they knew it was Andre imbuing my mind with his genius.

If I excelled in school and graduated at the top of my class, it is because Andre’s own foregoing performance inspired me. I so wanted to be my brother’s sister, and every teacher we had in common reminded me of the big shoes I had to fill.

In high school, Andre instructed me on how to prioritize my commitments and to complement rigorous academic courses with extracurricular activities and community leadership—it would work wonders on my college applications. He convinced me I could trump the SAT IIs as a mere 14-year-old—a task usually reserved for high school seniors—and I did. 

He’d warn me about certain belligerent teachers and how to stay on their good side. And he glossed over my literature compositions, making sure I had a strong foothold on the English language that would serve me well throughout university and beyond.

When I matriculated to college, I elected to be an engineer just as Andre had. Fearful of coming off as an annoying copycat, I chose mechanical engineering because it appeared to be the closest cousin to his field of civil engineering. We even had the opportunity to enroll in machine shop together, he a senior, and I a lowly sophomore. I like to tease him though that I finished the course project first—he had teamed up with a friend, and I, working individually, had no one to distract me!

To this day, Andre remains my personal and professional compass. He is assiduous, brilliant, and above all, the master of efficiency. I prefer to think I acquired my time management skills from him, for no one can hold a candle to how much he can achieve in such little time—he is seriously talented.

And so on this blessed August close, I want Andre to know what a vital and influential figure he is in my life. I’m 100% confident John Paul feels the same, but their relationship is slightly different. Being the boys that they are, they share an unbridled enthusiasm for PlayStation 4 and go at it as partners, even if they reside on opposite coasts. Their brotherly bond is unshakable.

Dear Andre, I raise my glass to you. May today and everyday be sweet recompense for your big heart, boundless generosity, and admirable sense of self. Thank God you are the firstborn!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

6 Types of Patrons You’ll Encounter at a Coffee Shop in Lebanon

Image
You haven’t really adult-ed if you haven’t flocked to a coffee shop at least once in the past week, am I right? Admittedly, I was a little late to the game. I started sipping on caffeinated brew when my eldest was born, about six years ago. I’d place him in his stroller and lap around the mall for an hour or two, and when he drifted off to sleep, I’d slide into an armchair at Dunkin’ and order a donut, croissant-wich and coffee combo (yep, that was the ultimate trifecta.).  Fresh-brewed dark roast coffee, served piping hot with the steam blanketing my visage to deliver facial-like effects. Those few moments of uninterrupted peace formed my golden hour. I’d sit back, sip on my cup of joe, and quietly take in the scenes surrounding me. To this day, I love hanging out aimlessly at a coffee shop, merely to study the behavior of other patrons and try to deduce their craft. Here are the most common profiles I’ve encountered. My favorite indulgence at a coffee shop: donut and a cup of ...
Read more

A Crowning Iftar Experience at the Crowne Plaza Beirut

Image
It had been decidedly too long since my first visit to the Crowne Plaza Beirut, tucked in the heart of Hamra along the main drag. Standing tall – a formidable 21 floors to be exact – with sweeping panoramic views of the Lebanese capital city, the Crowne Plaza, an IHG (Intercontinental Hotels Group) property, has so much going for it. To begin, the underground self-parking facility cannot be overlooked, as parking is typically nightmare-inducing elsewhere in Beirut. At just 200,000 LBP (USD 2.20) for up to four hours, this is a bargain. Alight the elevator at the ground floor, where a few steps westward will land you at the threshold of the Crowne Plaza. The hotel boasts 190 rooms, and I’m told that you can nab a room with complimentary breakfast buffet including VAT for about $100. You really can’t beat that in or outside of the city! Last Friday, we forayed into Hamra with the aim of trying the Iftar, a traditional Ramadan feast enjoyed at sunset, at Crowne Plaza’s Vivaldi restaurant...
Read more

7 Types of Lebanese Parents You’ll Encounter at School Pickup

Image
For the past three years, I’ve been shuttling my kids to and from school. It’s always a treat to greet them as their scholastic day draws to a close and they melt into your arms, eager to head home.  Right up there after that gratifying reunion is the entertainment value you derive from your encounters with other parents milling around the school building threshold in the minutes leading up to end of day. So amusing is the range of characters you’ll meet – whether they be grandparents filling in for parents tied up at work, or parents able to carve out time to pluck up their offspring – that I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to blog about it. Here they are in no specific order. Can you relate?   1. The Haughty Mama : her favorite hand accessory is her smartphone, which she’s either holding to her lips transmitting nonstop nonsense voice notes, or scrolling furiously through her Instagram feed. Her hair is perfectly coiffed, with the essential extensions. She’s got those...
Read more