Chapter 1, The Big News
October 17, 2001
I sit on my older brother’s bed, we’re both playing on the Nintendo 64 when suddenly our parents call us to go downstairs. We pause our game, thinking we’ve done something bad. I look at one of my brothers, he says what we’re all thinking,
“Are we in trouble?”
We all start to approach the living room, seeing mom and dad there, but they do not seem angry; but excited. Oh! I think I need to introduce myself, I’m Ken Pop! I’m 5 years old, the youngest of 3 brothers, my older two being Brenden and Lorenzo. Brenden, though a little bit of a meanie at times, can be a pretty cool guy. Lorenzo, though, sometimes I wonder if he’s actually meanie or it’s just an act like what Brenden does. Anyhow, I approached the living room with Brenden and Lorenzo; seeing my parents expression I wanted to breathe a sigh of relief that we weren’t in trouble. Both my mom and dad seemed excited to tell us something, what could be was still a mystery for us. Did we win the lottery? Are we going to Disneyland? Are we finally allowed to not go to school anymore? Were just some thoughts I had in my mind. Finally, contained in their excitement they said,
“Brenden, Lorenzo, Ken, we wanted to say to you that you guys…”
My parents take a nervous breath before ending their sentence, which adds fuel to the fire; what could be the news they wanted to tell us? Though finally my parents tell us the news.
“We wanted to tell you… That you guys will all be older brothers.”
I hear Brenden jump up and down in excitement, soon followed by me and Lorenzo.
“WOOOH!!” Brenden says.
“Let's go!” Soon followed by both me and Lorenzo.
“I’m glad you boys are excited for your younger sibling.” My mom says.
“Just remember to treat them nicely.” Dad responded.
I started to return with my siblings to our room, excited for a 4th brother that could join us while we played, finally fulfilling the last controller port on the console. Once we’re in the room again I speak.
“Man, I can’t wait for an extra brother we can play games with!” I exclaim with excitement.
It wasn’t until Lorenzo replied with “Well what if it’s a younger sister?”
It’s a thought I didn’t gain until now, but now that it’s mentioned it doesn’t go away. What if it was a baby sister? How would she think of the boy stuff me and my brothers do on a daily basis? I just hope it’s in my favor and I have a baby brother, if not… Well I would still love and support her unconditionally like what I do with the rest of my family. I just have to wait and see.
October 18, 2001
Today before school, I told my best friend, Periklis Spiros, about the news I got last night. He responds with,
“Nice man! You’re gonna be like me!” He has a younger sister named Yianna, she’s a little cute.
“Yeah, I can’t wait for it,” I responded. I really get excited for my new sibling; I want to tell everyone that I had a little bit of an interaction with this news.
Suddenly, Periklis tells me, “By the way, what are your mom and dad going to call the baby?”
I start to ponder, I don’t have the answer but I tell him, “Probably once we find out if it’s a boy or a girl” I say, “Once then I can answer the question!”
We continued to chat until the bell rang, signaling the end of recess. We all line up until Ms. Hanna, my teacher, arrives and brings us inside. I like Ms. Hanna, she’s a nice teacher and is really supportive of me; she likes flowers and bees so I try my best to draw them for her. Once we’re instead she says to the class,
“Alright class! Time to write about the most exciting news you’ve received, and we’ll share it with the class!”
Ms. Hanna starts to pass out the worksheet to me and the rest of the class, the perfect opportunity to share with my classmates and Ms. Hanna the news I received last night. I start to write about how I’m going to become a big brother just like the rest of my siblings, writing it as best as I can. After 10 to 15 minutes, Ms Hanna tells the class,
“Alright class! Time to share what we wrote about!”
I see my other classmates walk up and present what they wrote. Some talk about going to Six Flags. Others talk about getting a puppy or visiting France. Finally after I bit, it was my turn to present to the class. I walked in front of the whiteboard; our classroom was one of the fancy classes that got these new whiteboards instead of the old chalkboards, which is cool! Anyhow, I stand in front of the class and read to them what I wrote on my paper. Once I revealed to them the news, Ms. Hanna, and soon the rest of the class began to clap for me. Ms. Hanna, while clapping, said.
“Congrats Ken! It’s a big responsibility to be a good older brother, you know”
“Yeah, but I’ll try my best!” I responded.
“I know you can do it!”
It’s another reason why I love Ms. Hanna, she’s a very kind teacher and always supports me and my classmates! Anyways, at the end of the day while we’re being picked up from school, Ms. Hanna has a quick conversation with my parents
“Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. Pop! Ken told us the news in class today” Ms. Hanna says as she hugs my mom.
“Thank you Ms Hanna, we can tell you further details once we’re further along.” my dad responds, putting his hand out for a handshake.
“We can just give you our phone number and we’ll give you updates.” my mom replies, putting out her Motorola.
My parents continue to talk with Ms. Hanna for a bit, exchanging phone numbers. After a few minutes of talking they say goodbye and we’re on our way home. I get increasingly excited for the day I can meet my baby sibling, and all the times we can play together and do fun stuff when we grow up. All I have to do is just wait and see.