tell them it's just love

Add henna sticks to my wish list.

We only have 3 at home and I think at the rate we're using them...ha.

There's something lovely about having a big family - even though 'big' isn't really what I think of it, though everyone else seems to do that - with an even number of members.

Each person will have that one other to gravitate to, and there is no one left out.

And with 6 people at the dinner table every evening, there is sufficient conversation and merriment going around.

It is even more so when a family still has that one child to care for, or a little girl to nurture, because the older ones will still have that unbroken link to innocence.

I can never not admire teenagers with (much) younger siblings.

It's like, I can relate to you.

And we both know how it is like to always have to adapt to a young child's caprices.

Or how to effectively get them to do something they positively abhor.

Or how to not foolishly lose tempers and inevitably reveal the ugly sides of "grown-ups".

And we would know how to play pretend and think simplistically and be like a child.

Because it is hard work seeing that they grow towards the right kind of sunlight, and that they do it not too quickly, and that they don't feel the harsh pinches of real life just yet.

And what you would recognize in an older sibling - any older sibling, really - is the understanding of the importance of sacrifice for the sake of comfort/happiness of the younger.

One would have to part with a piece of favourite candy, or a warm cardigan, or the right to watch an amazing documentary about the universe.

And once anybody learns sacrifice, unselfishness and thoughtfulness comes naturally.

So I should really say I am glad and content with my family.