From shadow to success
MY brother, who is three years older than me, excels in both his studies and sports, achieving numerous awards over the years and consequently being the son my mother is extremely proud of.

Growing up, I was the second child who scored average passing grades.

It was obvious that there was a clear distinction between my brother and me – the overachiever and the underachiever.

From as long as I can remember, I sat on the sidelines, watching him stand on one grand stage or podium after another to receive his awards.

His achievements made my mum beam with pride over and over again as she could display his trophies on our living room shelf. There were rows of them standing tall like skyscrapers.

In every school he attended, his successes brought him much recognition. It was then that the immense shadow in which I lived became clear to me.

“Are you Ryan’s sister?”

“Isn’t that your brother?”

“How is your brother so smart?”

The frequent questions I was bombarded with from my peers and teachers on my first day of school occurred every time they saw him receiving an award or whenever they saw the both of us together.

Over time, I grew jealous of him. The only praises I heard were directed towards his achievements, grades and athleticism.

It reached the point where I questioned myself each day, asking, “Why wasn’t I as smart as my brother? Why wasn’t I as talented as him? Why couldn’t I be more like him?”

Then came the turning point in my life three years ago, when I had just reached 15. I realised that if I wanted to break free from living in my brother’s shadow, I needed to change.

If I wanted to be the successful child my mother could also be proud of, I needed to try.

I turned the jealousy within me into motivation that fuelled my hunger to improve every aspect of my life.

I began by putting in the effort to study and keeping up with all my classwork, regardless of how much I disliked it.

Along the journey, studying gradually became a part of my daily routine and no longer felt like a chore.

Soon after, results started showing. For the first time in my life, I got an academic award – I earned a spot in the Top 10 rankings in Year Nine at my school.

This caught me off guard because I had never expected myself to achieve such a feat.

That first achievement paved the path for even more successes ahead of me.

Last year, I received the Best Sports Girl award in my year on my school’s Sports Day, earning three gold medals, two silver medals and a bronze medal for track and field events.

The most challenging part of this journey was sitting for my International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) exams last year.

These exams determine the next stage of life after secondary school and play a crucial role in securing a seat in colleges or universities.As expected from my brother, he obtained full A* in the subjects he took for his IGCSE exams. Now that it was my turn, I told myself that those were the results I wanted too.

However, during my preparation for the exams, the difficulties of this goal were tremendous and I thought it was nearly impossible to achieve it.

I doubted myself countless times and was on the brink of giving up.

That was when my brother encouraged me, saying, “If you aim for the stars, maybe you’ll reach the sky.”

Those simple yet powerful words became my life’s motto to this day.

When the results day arrived, my heart almost stopped as I saw my grades. It was also the first time I witnessed my mum light up with such joy because of my achievement. For a second, I thought I was dreaming.

For more than half of my life, I believed my brother’s shadow would loom over me wherever I went. Growing up made me realise that I also had the potential to achieve great things.

I am truly grateful to have someone like him to look up to. As my older brother, greatest rival and biggest inspiration, he is the reason for turning all my impossible dreams and ambitious goals into reality.

Shin Ying, 18, a student in Kuala Lumpur, is a participant of the BRATs Young Journalist Programme run by The Star’s Newspaper-in-Education (Star-NiE) team. For updates on the BRATs programme, go to facebook.com/niebrats.

With the theme of the article in mind, carry out the following English language activities.

1. Is there an aspect of your life you would like to improve? If so, what is it and what factors can motivate you to achieve your goal?

2. Rivalry can lead to both positive and negative outcomes. Look for examples in today’s newspaper illustrating such outcomes. Then, have a show-and-tell with your friends and discuss the lessons learnt from these rivalries.

The Star’s Newspaper-in-Education (Star-NiE) programme promotes the use of English language in primary and secondary schools nationwide. For Star-NiE enquiries, email starnie@thestar.com.my.
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Sibling rivalry spurs teen on to achieve goals