Committee Picks: Youth Category

Caption
“Kor, can eat together?”. When sis and I attended the same primary school, she would occasionally ask to meet up during recess and I always thought that these encounters were nothing more than familial bonding sessions during our breaks. But these simple sibling interactions masked her true intention - to escape from her peers who looked upon her with disdain and to find solace in family. Unbeknownst to me, sis was bearing the brunt of bullying and neglect. While some ostracised her for her desire to speak her mind, others cast derogatory comments about her image. The aftermath of these actions plagued sis for years as the memories of these events stifled her confidence and choked her up one time too many. As a brother, my biggest regret is that I didn’t see the signs and perhaps intervene to save her from a now solemn past.