Hello Silver Bloggers! How are you? I hope all is good! It's been a week since I haven't posted. I'm a bit busy and so many things come to my mind that I can't think what to write about. Since I started to join this platform I've been excited to share about my twin sister, but something holds me, maybe I will cry while I write our story. Last night, I dreamt that we were together having a conversation and she said "Share our story on your blog" Then we laughed out loud. So here I am now sharing our story.
Our Mom said, that from the moment we were born, my twin and I weren't just siblings, we were two souls bound together, inseparable existing as a mirror of images to one another. Not a single day passed when we weren't dressed the same. Our Mom made sure we wore identical dresses. If one had a hairclip, so did the other, the same with the shoes. When our birthday comes, two sets of cakes, two sets of candles and two wishes are made at the same time. Our childhood was wrapped in a kind of love that only twins can understand. We played the same game, shared the same toys and we watched the same TV series. We did everything together.
Back in elementary days, we were always on the move, we were very active and eager to participate in various activities, from academic to extracurricular events. We are the star dancers of our school, we light up on the stage and brings energy and passion to every performance. We always won school district competitions from folk to modern dances. At the same time, we're proud members of the school band, where we played as lyricists. Not to brag but we managed to balance both excellence and passion. We made it to secure our spot on the honor roll.
High school days were a time of self-discovery, giggles and excitement. We are still in the same sections and we have the same group of friends. But this time we started to embrace our individuality, yet no matter how different our choices of clothes, our hairstyles, still remained unbreakable. Sometimes we were opposite from each other. She loved bright colors that made her stand out while I leaned toward more neutral and look simpler but despite dressing differently we were still unmistakably twins. She was drawn to the confident and smiling type and I was the quiet one. We were each other confidante. Before we sleep at night, we talk about our crushes, laugh out loud and giggle a lot. We never felt like competing, we were simply two hearts learning about love in our own ways together. But she was the first to experience a puppy love. I still remember the way her eyes spark when she talks about him. I was her secret keeper.
Back in college days, still in the same section, the same group in our clinical area. Life was a whirlwind, exhausting and challenging that tested our patience and resilience. We were each other strength, pushing through our sleepless nights studying, return demos and hospital shifts. When one feels like giving up, the other has to say "Keep going, we've got this". We made it, finally to the end, as promised to each other. We took the Nurses Licensure Examination, and there our names side by side. I remember we jumped as high as we could while we screamed, we are Nurses! We cried, and we laughed as if we were crazy, lol. We proved that together we could conquer anything.
We haven't enjoyed being together as Nurses. After two months of passing the Licensure Exam, she got pregnant by her boyfriend and they got married. They lived away from our hometown, It's a 4-hour drive to get there. Because we were not used to being away from each other, she asked me to stay with them for a month. After a month, I decided to go back home because I had been accepted as a Casual Nurse at the hospital in our city. From then we seldom see but communication was still there. When got married, we lived in the same city, but we seldom saw each other because my work was in our hometown, I get home every weekend. Despite our busy lives, we make sure we bond once a month with our kids to stay connected.
These pictures were taken during the wedding of our brother, Happy to have each other even for one day. Throughout the years we haven't bonded that much because she lives away from us, she worked as a private nurse in Manila and often goes home even on special occasions.
This was our last picture before I left out of the country. She met me at the airport in Manila, 6 hours before my flight. Our time together was short but we made every moment count. We laughed and shared life stories.
Saying goodbye is not easy but the comfort of knowing we would always be there for each other.
While I'm here in Dubai, we always do video calls, I had so much time because I don't work here. Every time we talked I noticed that she was pale and losing weight, so I asked her, and she told me that she was fine and nothing to worry about. Last May 24, 2024, she told me that she's always having stomach pain if she takes food even in small amounts. So I told her to refrain from drinking coffee, she's a true coffee enthusiast, able to have multiple cups without hesitation. I told her to do an executive check and she did. She was admitted, and every day we did video calls, she was losing weight every time I saw her. The results were out, but I heard nothing from her. Our mom disclosed the results and told me that my twin didn't want to know the family that she had cancer and it was stage 4. Maybe she didn't want us to worry especially her kids. Her kids are all grown up and working. I already knew what could be the outcome, I researched all the results she shared with me and of course, we're in the medical field. Days later my Mom called me, for how many days I hadn't seen her there was so much big difference, she was very skinny and her tummy was bulging. We cried while we talked but I tried to hold back my tears and cheer her up. She smiles while I'll throw jokes at her even if it's too heavy inside me to see her in that situation. Every day my husband sees me crying and worrying about the situation. He booked me a flight back home. I was very thankful for my husband because he was very supportive.
I arrived on the 16th of June and went directly to the hospital. My heart was very heavy seeing my twin sister in a hospital bed. We hugged each other crying, and then she whispered to me, "Don't leave me". I nodded and said "YES". I never left her side, I took care of her 24 hours, I just napped, I think the longer nap I did was 30 minutes. I've witnessed her struggles while she was experiencing too much pain. Adjusting the pillows making sure she was comfortable. There were times she was not in the mood and it was understandable but I will always let her smile, I will put a scarf on her head take a picture and say smile! She asked me how I smile I'm on this situation, I would just answer, positive vibes with swaying moves and You're pretty with your scarf, she just smiled and did the peace sign with her fingers near her face.
She requested to be home at our ancestral house. We talked to the Doctors and she was allowed to be discharged from the hospital. Her case was hopeless because the water in her lungs was increasing. She didn't want to have it extracted, I think she was tired and didn't want to add pain to her because she knows after a day the water would be there again. We respect her decision.
We took her home, the family bonded together creating memories because we knew anytime she would be gone. After 3 days at home, hoping to give her some comfort, she started having difficulty breathing. I increased the oxygen level and we rushed her to the hospital. My heart was pounding with silent prayers. I hold her hand, calling her name to keep her with me. The doctors and nurses moved quickly, I stood there helpless, watching as they fought to save her. The machines beeped and then slowed until there was silence. She was gone. We all cried and accepted the truth.
Now, even though she's gone, I hold onto those moments like treasures, the love we shared was the most beautiful kind of love of all. Forever my twin, forever my angel.
Honestly, as I wrote this I can't hold my tears from falling. I missed her so much. I hope you like our story. Thank you for reading.
Photos edited using Canva