anything for my sister...

I cried for my brother 6 times
I was born in a secluded village of a mountain.

Days by days my parents plowed the yellow dry soil
with their backs facing the sky.

I have a younger brother, 3 years younger than me.
Once, to buy a handkerchief which all girls around me
seemed to have, I stole 50 cents from my father's drawer.

Father known about it right away.

He made my younger brother and me kneeled against the
wall, with a bamboo stick in his hand.

"Who stole the money?" he asked.

I was stunned, too afraid to talk. Father didn't hear
any of us admit, so he said, "Fine, if nobody wants to
admit, you two should be beaten!"

Suddenly, my younger brother gripped father's hand and
said," Dad, I was the one who did it!"

Father was so angry that he kept on whipped my brother
until he lost his breath.

After that, he sat down on our stone bed and scolded
my brother, "You have learnt to steal from your own
house now, what other embarrassing things you
will do in the future?? You should be beaten to death!
You shameless thief!"

That night, mother and I hugged my brother. His body
full of injuries, but he didn't shed a single tear.

In the middle of the night, all of sudden I cried out
loudly.

My brother covered my mouth with his little hand and
said, " Sis, now don't cry anymore. Everything has
happened."

I still hate myself for didn't have enough courage to
admit what I had done.

Years gone by, but the incident still looked like it
just happen! ed yesterday.

I will never forget my brother's expression when he
protected me.

That year, my brother was 8 years old; I was 11 years
old.

When my brother was in his last year of his lower
secondary school, he was accepted in an upper
secondary school in the central. At the same time, I
was accepted into a province's university.

That night, father squatted in the yard, smoking,
packet by packet.

I could hear him said, "Both our children have good
results? very good results?"

Mother wiped off her tears and sighed," What is the
use? How can we possibly finance both of them?"

At that time, my brother walked out, he stood in front
of father and said,"Dad, I don't want to continue my
study anymore, I have read enough books."

Father swung his hand and slapped brother on his face.

And then, he started to knock on every house in the
village to borrow money.

I stuck out my hand as soft as I can to my brother's
swollen face, and said, "A boy has to continue his
study; If not, he will not be able to leave this
depths of poverty."

Me, on the other hand, had decided not to further my
study to university.

Who knows on the next day, before dawn, my brother
left the house with a few pieces of worn-out clothes
and a few dry beans. He sneaked to the side of my bed
and left a note on my pillow;
"Sis, get into an university is not easy. I will go
find a job and send money to you."

I held the note while sitting on my bed, and cried
until I lost my voice.

That year, my brother was 17 years old; I was 20 years
old. With the money father borrowed from the whole
village, and money my brother earned from carrying
cement on his back at cons! truction site,finally, I
managed to get to the third year of my study in the
university.

One day, I was studying in my room, when my roommate
came in and told me,"There's a villager wait for you
outside!"

Why is there a villager looking for me? I walked out,
and saw my brother from afar, His whole body is dirty,
covered by dust, cement and sands. I asked him, "Why
don't you tell my roommate that you are my brother?"

He replied with a smile," Look at my appearance. What
will they think if they know that I am your brother?
Don't they laugh at you?"

I felt so touched, and tears filled my eyes. I swept
away dusts from my brother's body. And said with a
lump in my throat, " I don't care of what people say!
You are my brother no matter what your appearance is?"

From his pocket, he took out a butterfly hair clip. He
wore it on me, and said, "I saw all the girls in town
are wearing it. So, I think you should also have one."

I could not hold back myself anymore. I pulled my
brother into my arms and cried and cried.

That year, my brother was 20 years old; I was 23 years old.

The first time I brought my boyfriend home, the broken
window had been repaired.And it looked so clean inside
the house.

I put some ointment on his wound and bandaged it,
"Does it hurt? " I asked him.

"No, it doesn't hurt. You know, when I was working in
the construction site, stones falling on my feet all
the time. Even that could not stop me from working
and?"

In the middle of the sentence, he stopped. I turned my
back on him and tears rolling down my face.

That year, my brother was 23 years old; I was 26 years old.

They said, once they left the village,they didn't know
what to do.

My brother also didn't agree, he said, "Sis, you just
taking care of your parents-in-law. I will take care
of mom and dad here."

My husband became the director of his factory. We
wanted my brother to get the job as the manager in the
department of maintenance. But my brother rejected the
offer. He insisted on starting to work as a reparation
worker.

One day, my brother was on the top of a ladder
repairing a cable, when he got electrocuted, and was
sent to the hospital.

My husband and I visited him. Looked at the white
gypsum on his leg, I grumbled,"Why did you reject to
be a manager? Manager will not do something dangerous
like this. Look at you now, such a serious injury. Why
you didn't want to listen to us?"

With a serious expression on his face, he defended on
his decision, "Think of brother-in-law?he just became
the director, and I almost uneducated. If I became the
manager, what kind of rumors will fly around?"

My husband's eyes filled up with tears, and then I
said, "But you lack in education also because of me!"
"Why talking about the past?" My brother held my hand.

That year, he was 26 years old and I was 29 years old.
My brother was 30 years old when he married a farmer
girl from the village.
In his wedding reception, the master of ceremonies
asked him, "Who is the one you respect and love the
most?"

"When I was in primary school, the school was in
different village.Everyday, my sister and I walked for
2 hours to go school and go home. One day, I lost one
of my pair of gloves. My sister gave me one of hers.
She only wore one glove and walked for so far. When we
got home, her hand was so trembled because of the
weather that was so cold that she could not even
hold her chopsticks. From that day on, I swore that as
long as I live, I would take care of my sister and be
good to her."

Applause filled up the room. All guests turned their
attentions to me.

Words were so hard to come out from my mouth, "In my
whole life, the one I would like to thank the most is
my brother,"
And in this happy occasion,in front of the crowd,
tears rolling down my face again.