How My Ate Angeli Broke the Barriers of Our Lives

” As my birthday is coming up, I was thinking on writing about, the perks of getting older, when something better came up.
I received this beautiful article written about me, by my beautiful and talented sister, Mirzi. ”

– Anj

HOW MY ATE ANGELI BROKE THE BARRIERS OF OUR LIVES

by: MIRZI REINA B. RAÑOJA

There are people that I love, some people that I respect, and some people that I admire.

But there are just a few people that I love, respect and admire all at the same time. One of those is my Ate Angeli. It has been a long time, since I wanted to write about her and tell everyone more about her (aside from the things she tells you).

To Ate,

I’m sure family members and friends, tell you all the time how great of a person you are.

But I want to write this, to tell YOUR family and friends more of you and in my point of view, how you, as an Ate, blazed the trail for us
and helped your siblings be where they are now, in ways you were not even aware of.

So hence I entitle this piece –
HOW MY ATE ANGELI BROKE THE BARRIERS OF OUR LIVES
(and continue to do so)

My eldest sister has this penchant of reliving the exciting, the hilarious, even the embarrassing moments of our lives, as we all know.

But it is her sharp memory for the details (smell of the room, color of the scarf, taste of the dish, facial expressions, the weather at that time) that leaves me wondering, “How could she have remembered that?” And it dawned on me, that she remembers details vividly, because she was into IT during that time.

She lives every waking moment being involved, aware, and reactive to what is happening around her. Not your typical I’m-so-bored-lets-go-to-the-mall-or-somewhere-duh kind of friends, who don’t give a hoot for things that don’t benefit them.

In fact, her anecdotes about random people are so detailed, you can repeat the same story to another person despite you not experiencing it first-hand.

Definitely a big help during family gatherings or social events, where you don’t know anyone or anything of the topic but at the very least, you can dish out your own pretend sense of knowledge as if it were yours.

I have to say that there are still some, who associate particular traits with how a person should look like. Kind people are perceived to be quiet and submissive, generosity always have to mean giving out material things, while patience has to be expressed with a soft, relaxed face.

I suddenly say these lines because, I have seen how my Ate has broken those stereotypes as perceived by others. I have never met a person who possesses all these qualities at the same time but not as we expect them. She can be patient with a snarling face, show kindness while talking non-stop about what could have been done more, and she can be generous with advices and reminders, that are worded more in the active verb rather than the passive,leaving me to think, I should bring a To-Do note pad next time we talk on the phone.

So let me stop this paragraph, before I do further damage to my Ate’s reputation. When we were younger, I have always noticed how some people perceived my Ate simply as the “Talkative One”. Those narrow-minded, back-of-the-woods adults see that as something impolite, disrespectful, or just not the way a child should behave.

It was simply unheard of at that time. Well now I know, being an adult myself, that they were just too scared to handle an intelligent, frank and mind-provoking kid like my sister. My Ate prevailed and stood her ground from pre-school to high school, and with the help of those who believed in her (she can enumerate them, just ask her), she managed to be active in school clubs, winning medals in elocution, and most of all, gaining and keeping a solid group of friends, who still keep in touch with her to this day.

For her younger brothers and sisters, she was the advocate during those times when we were too shy, too scared or too overwhelmed to say anything as a child. To describe her gift of expression, would be redundant as we all read her blogs and listen to her stories.

But as child, she was the type of kid you can confidently leave in a room full of older people, while you prepare the table, and to see upon returning that she was leading the conversation with the adults.

I do not want to sound like my Ate’s biographer, but in my point of view, when we were growing up, it was my Ate’s genuineness and generosity with her own person that endeared her to friends. She never hid who she was, her flaws, fears, insecurities, background or status in life.

It was safe to be real around my sister.

While the rest of us at that time were naively hesitant too venture into mingling with people from the higher tax bracket, for my ate it was simply about friendship, extending a hand and growing as a person.

This trait very much like my Dad’s, she showed to us siblings through her anecdotes and letters that friendship knows no boundaries.

Our family is fairly generous with each other in terms of giving gifts (maybe brought about growing up with our big size, one had no choice but to automatically share all the time).

But no one is more generous with compliments or positive observations than my Ate Angeli. While I know of some people who just have the hardest time uttering a single word of compliment, my Ate gives it out all the time. She can point out something great about you, that you, yourself were unaware, turning a bad day into a better one.

And like good energy flowing out into space, and you would want to pass it forward as well. On the other hand, let me remind all of us that my Ate Angeli may be special, but she is not an angel, because of the mere fact that she is my bloodline.

And while I am still gathering additional evidence in proving our ancestral relation to the Canine family, particularly of the Doberman breed (“will attack when provoked”), all of us still experience the occasional quick retort, unveiled sarcasm, and one-hour monologue from her as the situation may deem appropriate.

I now come to the end of this mini-testimony. Like the typical safe person that I am, I ask forgiveness for my style of writing as it may come across as stereotypical, but in fact I haven’t written a piece in years.

Only for my Ate Angeli will I venture again to do essays and musings. I am glad for this opportunity to write about you and bash you indirectly (on your birthday of all days), but I want to tell you that I do believe 38 years ago, on January 23, 1975, God created a special person in this world.

Happy Birthday Ate Angeli! You know I love you..

P.S. Sorry about divulging your age

–

My sister Mirzi Reina, is the second child in our big family. She is a consistent honor student since pre-school, while finishing Cum Laude for Business Economics at U.P. Diliman.

( The first in the family, to finish cum laude from U.P. Diliman and perhaps, one of our youngest sister Steffi Reizza’s inspiration, for she was able to replicate the feat, several years later.)

Mirzi, also holds a second degree, by being that of, a registered nurse. Aside fom being dubbed in the family, as,

” Ang tag iya sa kadaghanan sa mga medals ”

or

” The owner of most of the medals “, hanging on our family achievement wall,

she is also the most well travelled person in our family, having gone to places in Asia, America and Europe.

She presently shares with me, many of her family and parenting wisdom, with her being a loving wife to my brother-in-law, Jong
and a great mother, to two adorable and intelligent children, Kelly and Tyler.

She, of course, occupies a major space in my heart. Yes, I know you love me,…all the time! And I love you back.

Thank you Mirz, for this.