Happy birthday, older bro!

It's my Kuya's birthday today. It's his 25th, I think. Tanda na 'no?. I wish I could post a picture of him here, but I don't have any scanned pic. The only picture I have of him is in the family picture I carry around in my wallet. I need a digicam, Papa! Give me one!

I sincerely hope for my Kuya's happiness in life. He's been one hell of a great brother to me, and he deserves a breather. There were a lot of quarrels, of course, especially during the times I was still living in Davao, but none of those ever chipped the love I have for my Kuya. Ever since I could recall, he has always been there to take care of me. I remember seeing a photograph where he was behind my baby-walker (I don't know how else to describe that wooden thing), smiling wide at the camera while making sure that I didn't hurt myself in that awkward contraption. However, he also claims nowadays that it was his doing why I became "brilliant" (eherm). While I was still a baby, he says, he lifted me by the legs and bumped my head on the concrete floor. That shook a lot of the brain cells I've had, he explains, and that is why I'm who I am now. Well, thanks are in order, I guess.

My brother has always been the silent type. So am I, but his is a brooding silence. You tend to be wary by his quietude; you tend to be carefree with mine. Despite certain differences such as this one, though, we go along just fine. I love the things we do together. Before, in Zamboanga, we had our collections. He had his stamps, and X-Men cards, and rubber bands (yes, rubber bands); together, we had our Inquirer Trivia by Bong Barrameda. As we grew up, we became competitive with one another, at least academically. We grew up in an academic environment, where books were preferred over toys, and this became apparent in our competitions. We fought against each other in terms of points garnered while watching Battle of the Brains in RPN-9. After that wonderful show got cut off (and got replaced by the ugh LG Quiz Show), we fought against each other in quiz books Papa bought for us. My strength lay in Mathematics-- no surpise there. His strength lay in almost everywhere else-- History, Literature, Sports, and Philosophy most of all. Did he beat me? You bet he did. But I kicked his ass in more occasions than one, too.

When Kenneth came along, the fun doubled. Needless to say, the troubles doubled, as well. But Kuya managed to handle both of us with the gentle discipline only an eldest child can muster. If you ask both Kenneth and me what we think of our Kuya, we'll probably say the same thing: we love that brooding boy.

Kuya, thanks for everything, and I'm glad that you're here for all of us. Even if you did analyze me for your Psychology project without me knowing about the whole thing, we still love you. Happy birthday. :)