#222: Brave

The feeling Joshua gets when he sees his brother is the same he has when he sees himself in the mirror. It has always been that way. They may look alike, but it is as if they came from different families.

Joshua’s entrance into the world is one of his mother’s favourite stories to tell. He was always headstrong. It was he who started the first signs of her entering labour, and yet it was as if Ari was physically holding his brother back. It was too risky. She’d mimic when telling the story. For those who know the boys, even back in kindergarten, understood that Ari was always shy, considering his options, anticipating the risks.

But it was Joshua who took reckless risks, who rushed forward regardless of the cost. ‘Fortune favoured the brave’ should have been tattooed on her eldest son. He almost popped out in the Holden VH Commodore. Joshua was born in the waiting room, whilst Ari waited two whole days to be born.

In typical Ari fashion, he waited to see what would happen to his brother. He waited and waited, and only when he was sure there would be no downside, he entered the world.

And once they were freed of having to share a space, neither boy could sleep next to the other. There had to be some divider between them. They wouldn’t eat together. From an early age, both parents knew the boys would go to separate schools.