The Greatest Treasures

Pre-BA, there are exactly four people in this world who love me and I love completely and unconditionally: My Dad, my Mom, my sister and my brother. Now, there are five, but I'm not here to write about BA. This one's all about my family.

Unlike Paris Hilton, I wasn't born with a silver spoon. The complete opposite, in fact. My family had to deal with poverty and hardships in life. We struggled. I won't bore you with excruciating details, but suffice it to say that my present life is a far cry from what my life was when I was a kid. But what I lacked financially, my parents filled emotionally. I was one of the most-loved kids in this world. Believe it or not, I was actually a spoiled child. I didn't do domestic chores, I was sheltered from the harsh realities of life, and my parents rescued me whenever I 'effed' up.

Whenever I think of my Dad, I think of that time when I was a second-grader trying to cross an ankle-deep flooded street to get to my school. He decided that I was too precious to let a drop of water touch my feet, so he enveloped me in a poncho, put on his rain boots and carried me almost all the way to the school (it was walking distance). He had always treated me like an angel. If I asked him to take me to the airport or pick me up from school, trust me, he'd be there. Be it 5 in the morning or 12 midnight. And he's always on time. Sometimes even an hour or so earlier. There are a couple of times in college when I had to work on my thesis until wee hours of the morning and my Dad would be there waiting for me for hours until I'm done and ready to go home.

My Mom loves me with the same ardor. I've always thought of her as the one person who understands me better than anybody else in this world. I've got to admit, I'm a bit moody and hard to put up with when in a bad mood, but my Mom knows exactly what to do. She had always been a terrific Mom. She'd been with me through all my competitions, entrance exams and school applications. I'd tell her things I'd tell a bestfriend. I've cried on her shoulders or over the phone (now that we're miles apart) about boy troubles countless of times, we've watched all kinds of movies - from Braveheart to 9 1/2 weeks and Original Sin(",), and we've enjoyed countless shopping trips. She is a mother and a friend, rolled into one.

My sister, brother and I also have a bond that transcends that of blood or ordinary kinship. We take care of (although I probably did more, since I'm the oldest and I've taken my role as a big sister to heart) and supported each other, and were never jealous of each other's accomplishments. Like most siblings, we have our fair share of fights, but nothing was and never will be strong enough to break us.

I'm thankful for a lot of things in my life. But there's nothing I'm more thankful for, than my family and BA. To me, they are the greatest gifts anybody can ask for. They are... my greatest treasures.