I am the youngest of five children and have three brothers and one sister.
Since I was little, my parents always told me something.
“If Mom and Dad aren’t present, the unnies and oppas are their parents. Don’t treat them carelessly or disrespectfully!”
I heard such stories until I graduated from high school, and I had scabs in my ears.
Like my second parents, my older sister and oppa are my big support and provide me with a place to rest and unconditionally, in both good and difficult times.
When I thought, “I’ve been living without expressing myself too much, to your unwavering supporters and supporters of me,” this was a good opportunity to practice the “language of a mother’s love.” Since I’m of the same gender, I feel comfortable talking to her about it, but to my oppas, I was somewhat shy and awkward.
Especially for the eldest brother, even if we meet up with difficult things, there is no special conversation. When we say hello, “Hello, oppa!” I simply say, “Yes!” and that’s the end of the conversation.
I thought, 'What should I do? How do we put this into practice? It’s not easy to meet up with them, and out of nowhere phone calls,
After much deliberation, I thought of KakaoTalk, which provides help through various emoticons when it is difficult to express in words.
So I started sending greetings through KakaoTalk.
I thought, 'Will my eldest brother really answer me? Just reading this is success!’ I thought I should consistently send my greetings.
Surprisingly, they replied promptly and my KakaoTalk replies were also short, but knowing him, I could feel his heart. Since then, I’ve been greeting my eldest brother with emoticons.
Why couldn't they have sent it sooner? It’s not that difficult, it’s just that you were born before me and become an older sister . . .
I felt so sorry that I always accepted myself as the youngest.
When expressing gratitude, they will consistently ask, “As long as you live well, do you need anything?” as if your parents were asking yourself. Even though I have grown like a mountain in age and size, I am still young and young to my brothers and sisters.
Although it is a very small effort, I am happy to be able to express my gratitude to my sisters and oppas with the language of Mother's love. Giving in return often means more than we give.