The love and the hate bond we share with our sibling is the best connection on this planet. We love them like no one else, yet we fight with them for the smallest thing. They are our secret keepers, our protectors, and our best friends. They are the first persons who taught us the actual meaning of patience and sharing. No matter whether the sibling is a brother, a sister, or both, the experience remains the same.
Most of us feel lucky and blessed to have siblings. People who have a sister as the elder sibling share a similar experience because there is no better friend than an older sister. She always understands, supports, and cares for them. Sisters take care of every desires, no matter if it is an invaluable object or anything dear and out of her reach. Sisters’ lives revolve around their siblings; however, some believe that having a brother could have been more fun and naughty!
There are situations, when we need firm support of our siblings while standing our ground against the traditions and norms, especially when the faction against us is our parents. I have got a younger brother, when I had made the decision to relocate to Delhi a few months back, and my dad was not in agreement with my decision, my brother was all there to help me packing, dropping me from one place to other, and collecting the required things. He supports me whenever my parents opine about the societal norms and the risks involved with my relocation; he stands by me and even resorts to reasoning when required.
Growing up with siblings is an extraordinary experience. We share our lives with them in so many ways that they become an inseparable part of us. While older siblings often assume maturity and responsibility, and occupy places next to parents, the younger ones remain more relaxed and privileged. When it comes to chore distribution, the younger ones always find a way out, averting work and accountabilities while the errands automatically fall on the still frail shoulder of the older siblings. Even so, later in our adulthood, the differences and the quirkiness wither away and the siblings became best friends, with whom life’s ups and downs are shared and these brothers and sisters become de facto counsellors and advisors. In fact, the amount of information they have about us, stored in deep recesses of minds and hearts, since our journey together through childhood and later, equips them with the best solutions to our problems.
The ability for young people to express their feelings to anyone – sibling, parent, or friend – can be highly therapeutic and can prevent further worsening of depressed mood or anxiety. There is evidence suggesting that people with no sibling have often seen suffering in isolation. They are not just our sounding boards; the presence of siblings lightens the otherwise hostile environment. You get an opportunity to gossip about the relatives/ friends and stand together as a force to take on that mean cousin or aunt. The sibling affinity, standing by each other in the most unusual times, is something hard to explain. They shape our lives in the most unexplainable manner.
Childhood is the most memorable time with siblings. Siblings are like sugar and salt who can add taste and fun to life, also make life crazy and frustrating. But some people like me are always happy around our siblings. Every childhood day, spent with my younger brother, brings back fine memories to me; whether it was a fight, post which we both would end up crying, a burst of laughter after seeing dad’s radiating bald head, or a discussion about carrier, aspirations, and life. The most memorable would be when my brother was one and half years old, I used to take him on a bicycle ride, I was 9 and my entire concern was to take care of him while riding my bicycle. I always gave him the front seat and I sat at the back, securing him well enough averting any possibility of a fall.
A healthy sibling relationship promotes empathy, prosocial behaviour, and academic achievement. It can be an incredible source of support while an unhealthy toxic relationship can be equally devastating. It is regular for siblings to compete and battle with each other for different reasons, for example, competing for consideration or due to their temperaments; comparing grades or understanding and knowledge on different topics. They tend to compete with each other even after grown up in terms of the salary package, job, and position.
Competitiveness, or rivalry, is often a source of frustration and can be considered a negative aspect of siblings-relationship, particularly if the competition turns fierce or harmful. As a tribute to World Siblings Day, we choose to stick to the pleasant side of the sibling relationship. We firmly believe that no matter what path siblings take, life may change and isolate them, yet the affection and bond that they eternally share, even if obscure sometimes, resurfaces at unanticipated moments, to bail them out.
(Edited by Monica P Singhal)