I Don't Have Favourites, But She...

I love people-related prompts a lot. I love questions that border on our interactions with people. Those we love or maybe even those we may not even like so much. I just love things that relate to people because no man can build himself to the best possible version if he doesn’t, to an extent, relate to people.

I’ve probably talked about this in the past, but that has been a while so I’m happy to talk about it again. The Ladies of Hive community asked a very beautiful question and I’m set to give my answer.

Do you have a favorite family member? If yes, who is it, and what makes your relationship special?

I have mentioned it once or twice the relationship I have with my elder sister. My big sister who has the smallest age gap with me as compared to my other siblings. I think she’s not just my favourite family member but my favourite person in the world.

When the family is in a nostalgic mood or at random moments, my Mom would talk about my sister and I growing up. She’ll narrate a particular story that I’ve heard probably a million times but never get tired of hearing.

According to her, my sister and I were playing together one day. I was 2 and she’d just turned 4. So, at some point while playing, she beat me. I began to cry and ran to my uncle to report. My uncle who considered me his favourite then went back to my sister and smacked her for beating me and my sister began to cry profusely.

I got angry and my tears increased ten fold. I began to hit my uncle and said, “I said she beat me but did I say you should beat her?” Tears, snot and all, I kept hitting his leg and telling him to make her stop crying. My uncle was deeply confused. Really hilarious moment.

My Mom said it had always been that way with us. Anything that makes her cry would bring tears to my eyes, and if you yelled at her, I’d start crying even before she did and vice versa. It didn’t matter if she was at fault or not, you became my sworn enemy the moment you did anything that brought tears to her eyes.

My big sister is my best friend. Even though I’m the secretive type and she’s more open and carefree, she’s been my person from day one. It helps that she’s the funniest person I know. She has the most comical facial expressions and says the most hilarious things that make me laugh like a loony person. She’s the first daughter yet the clown of the family.

When she’s not around, the family feels her absence because she makes everywhere so fun and lively. I’m the daughter that is perpetually shut in her room so I doubt I’m the most fun person at home but when my sister persuades me to get out of the room and into the parlour, I see sides to me I rarely show the world. I’m a more liberated, goofy person with her around.

It also helps that she thinks I give the best advice on the planet. I’m the “Tessa will know what to do” person of hers. She knows I have faults but thinks I can never go wrong in advising people. She’s incredibly annoying, bosses me around and keeps complaining that if she’s not there, I can’t do anything for myself.

Which is true to an extent but I genuinely enjoy letting her braid my hair and pick out my dresses like I’m hopeless without her help. That’s cause I just love having her around me. Sometimes I want to knock her out of her shoes but those times grow increasingly rare as we get older. I’m happy when she’s happy and vice versa.

Oops. Far longer than I wanted to write. I tend to get like that about people I care about. But there you have it, guys. The answer to the question. My big sister: My favourite person in the world.

Jhymi🖤

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