Me, Undisguised

The men in my family consist of my dad and my two brothers. Out of the three of them, I’ve always thought Abang, the second one in the family, as the most egoistic. As a child, he was spoiled and self-centered, and believe me, I’m not exaggerating. He would never, ever admit he was wrong or that he had made a mistake. To him, whatever he did was always right. Seriously, to live with a person like that can really test your patience, and at times, your sanity. He hasn’t changed much over the years. Ok, ok, so he’s a bit more mature, and maybe a bit less spoiled, but that’s about it.

However, a few months ago, I was fortunate enough to witness a side of him that is rarely seen. I didn’t even know it existed actually. But it changed my views of him permanently. Here’s the story.

You could say that our house is a sanctuary for cats. If I were to mention the exact number of cats that we own, you would either look at me with amazement, or you would think I was nuts. It doesn’t matter, really.

The responsibility of the cats would always fall on the women of the family, meaning my mom, my sister and me. Nevertheless, my dad and my youngest brother, Syahin, would always find time to play with the cats, and occasionally feed and bathe them, but Abang had always been oblivious towards them. It’s not like he didn’t care, it’s just that they were not his top priority.

One day, my dad came across two kittens in the drain on his way back from the mosque. He told my mom about them. My mom asked for my brother’s help in rescuing the kittens, which he did. The kittens, only a few months old, were wet and dirty, and worse of all, full of scabs. My brother said that there were supposed to be three of them, but one of them died. He found it to be already floating in the drain, near to where the two were found.

Normally, since my sister was tied up with school work, it would have been either my mom or me that would be caring for the kittens and nursing them back to health. Unfortunately, though, during that time, I was already away in UIA, and my mom couldn’t spare much time for them because she was too busy with work and household chores. But she did what she could.

I was home one weekend when I witnessed an unbelievable sight. There was my brother, sitting cross-legged on the floor, with the two kittens playing about him, patiently putting ointment on them to heal their scabs. I was shocked, astounded, dumbfounded – you name it. To tell you the truth, it felt like I had intruded on a really intimate moment – a truly perfect Kodak moment. Only later did I find out that my brother had cared for the kittens during my absence.

My sister had also told me of another incident. My brother, with the kittens at his feet, was opening the fridge, when suddenly, something fell out. Afraid that it might hit the kittens, his first impulse was to shield the kittens with his foot.

My brother? Trying to protect the kittens? I couldn’t believe it. From then on, I began to see my brother in a new light. So, my brother had compassion after all. Or is it possible that it had always been there, and I was just too ignorant to notice? Hmm, I wonder.

I guess people do change, or at least, they grow up. Oh, don’t be fooled, he is still as egoistic as ever – he won’t even admit that the kittens were his and still refuse to take responsibility for them – but every time I’m at home, I would occasionally see him take the kittens into his arms to play with them for awhile. I can definitely live with that.

By the way, in case you were wondering, we named the kittens Sugar and Pepper. Alhamdulillah, they are now healthy, have grown tremendously, and are mischievous as ever.

One more thing, if you’re reading this, and you happen to know my brother by any chance, could you please not mention this to him? I don’t think he’ll be too happy to hear about it. He has a reputation to protect, if you know what I mean. ;o)

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