Of all the wonderful gifts given to men and women, I think I am most blessed with the gifts I have in my brother and sister. My brother has always been larger than life. From where I stood as a child, and being six years my senior, I believed he knew everything about good taste, cars, and the importance of a good education.

When my high school results were published, as they are in South African newspapers (in fact in the pages of the very newspaper where you are reading this column) it was my brother who, whipping through the seemingly endless lists of Smiths, first saw the asterisk perched on the end of my name like a big fat bulging mosquito. He glanced down the page in exactly the manner I did not want, and read, “Does not meet required standards for university entrance.”

Right then, my knees weak with my embarrassment; I knew he’d challenge me to re-write the examinations. This he did, and by April of the following year, I had my “Matric Exemption” (university entrance) in the bag!

Most people, those blessed to have brothers and sisters, will know their siblings for longer than they will know their parents. For each of mine, especially since both of my parents are deceased, I want the world to know I am exceedingly grateful for the gift I have in my brother and a sister.

Posted on June 4, 2009 at 4:12 pm in Family   |  RSS feed |   Reply   |   Trackback URL