My Brothers

One upon a time……
I can lose to anyone but not him, in fact them. Be it a game of chess, a game of cricket or tennis played with bare hands and rubber ball. I gave my best to ensure that I stayed on top and loath to give them an inch. I often fought to win, entered into brawl to gain the edge, conspired with my team mates to outwit. My god, my hate knew no boundaries when I lost to them, my brothers.

My brothers continued to haunt my days of growing up. They were invariable preferred by the arbitraries, my parents. Oh gosh but for them I would have thrashed my adversaries, the conniving two. Some how, they, my two younger brothers, got along well and they always seems to find a common cause against me? These emotions formed the part of my early memories of my brothers.

Some time in between….
Later on, we grew in time and mind. We started appreciating our individualities. I was more of an authoritarian who would never have no for an answer but always been the perpetual pampered boy of the family. However, my brothers now were more of friends than anything else. We shared the same bed, played the same games and saw the same programs in T.V. My younger ones were grooming up to be individuals in their own right. One was very studious, (eldest of my two younger brothers), patient, fierce competitor and loaded with a persona (intellect, not otherwise) to charm anyone who cares to listen.
The youngest one, I never g0t to know him when he was growing. He seemed to be a keen observer of our activities, very discrete about his preferences but doing quite well in whatever he chose to do. I could never fathom how he could manage to come up with good grades in spite of his abysmally low studying hours. However, he was the darling of the family. We would unite any against any common foe, neighbors were in awe of our unity but the truth is we had learned to tolerate our differences. To a very large extent our rivalry had come down.

Just a few years back…….

My younger brother, the studious guy and I got along very well. His friends were mine as well and my friends were his. We studied the same books, took part in same competition and attended the same Sunday club. Our youngest sibling was still a mystery to me, however he had matured into a young lad who was old enough to play cricket with us. He was mature enough to leave us alone when we had friends at home. To a large extent our difference had come down. Colleges, universities followed and we were geared up to take the life head on and make a mark.

I was the first one to leave the house, as I prepared to leave, I didn’t know what I was bequeathing to tides of time. However I bid adieu.




June 04, 2008

I am married and blessed with a daughter; my brothers have grown up into fulsome men in their own right. Studious one had turned into a potential scientist and is just a few months away from completing his doctorate from the Seoul University. The youngest one has become one of youngest people to adorn the office of assistant manager in a big banking conglomerate.

Our feelings for each other have evolved to one of camaraderie, friendship and to one that of soul mates. There is no secret amongst us, my life long enigma about my youngest one dawned on me. He was simply much better than both of us and has emerged as one with far more interpersonal skills and business acumen than both of us put together.

As I look back, our relationship cycle has taken a full circle. I have only fond memories left to chew. I only wish we relive all those moments once again. I have no regret about our relationship, I have spent the maximum share of my life with them, the best of my moments with them. I just wish and pray, my future generations would get such a lovely relationship to rejoice. When we see each other after a long gap, we just pick up from where we left, starting from cricket bats to our taunts.

Future….

No grand plan, no ambition to build an empire ( we would eventually do it), no billion dollar milestone to achieve and I am sure and this holds good for all three of us, no exotic place to visit in our to do list. However, we would want to spend the twilight years of life in embrace of our home town, Coimbatore. Sharing the same roof, the same drawing room and the same food, making sure we enjoy the second child hood blissfully without missing out on any fun of our first childhood.

All our work, money, passion is spend realizing this dream. If at all we want to bequeath anything, that would be, the harmony that we experience today amongst us to the our successors.

Blood is definitely thicker than water; friendship you forge with your brothers is unique and just can’t be matched by any other relationship in your world. You will have to experience it to believe it.