Strict si kuya: Viral handwritten letters show power of sibling bond

April 23, 2018 - 11:47 AM
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Siblings have a relationship that's unique and influential.

Rivalry at home is fairly common but one viral tweet shows how siblings’ relationships go way beyond petty domestic contests.

Twitter user Aaron Santos shared two handwritten letters from his younger sister. One letter was written two years ago while the other one was written recently.

The first letter was an apology while the second one was a letter of appreciation, where she tells him that she finally understood why he needed to be “strict” when she was younger.

Although Santos didn’t specify how or why he imposed rules for his sister, his post has been well-received by Twitterverse.

In a follow-up tweet, Santos admitted that his stern character toward his sister prevented him from developing a closer relationship with her.

Many people commented that the post made them cry.

It’s because a bond between siblings is unbreakable.

It’s believed that the bond among siblings is stronger than that of children and their parents.

“Sibling Bond” authors Stephen Bank and Michael Kahn said, “The sibling relationship is life’s longest lasting relationship, longer, for the most of us by a quarter of a century, than our ties to our parents.”

“It lasts longer than our relationship with our children, certainly longer than with a spouse, and with the exception of a few lucky men and women, longer than with a best friend,” they continued.

There’s also a quality to the relationship that is unlike no other.

“In general, parents serve the same big-picture role as doctors on grand rounds. Siblings are like the nurses on the ward. They’re there every day,” University of Pittsburgh psychologist Daniel Shaw told TIME.

Huffington Post editor Alena Hall believes our siblings enable us to form what would become our first peer interactions. (Pixabay)

Research reported on TIME magazine in 2006 found that siblings are “collaborators and co-conspirators.” They are also an individual’s “role models and cautionary tales.”

Siblings teach us how to form our first friendships and resolve fights. They also help unravel the world’s enigmas for each other.

Bad experiences make them closer 

In the viral handwritten letter, Santos’ sister cites times wherein she and her older brother had quarrels and misunderstandings. But these seemingly trying experiences also help siblings to form tighter bonds, the TIME report suggests.

When older siblings support and take care of their younger siblings, a unique kind of closeness is formed.

“When older sibs step in to help raise younger ones, the dual role of contemporary and caretaker can lay the foundation for an indestructible closeness later on,” TIME wrote.