It’s been over a week now, but I still get a little weepy when I think about my baby brother being all grown up.

My brother Victor got married on January 20, to his girlfriend of seven years, Vianca, and we couldn’t be happier. My brother and my mom walked me down the aisle when I got married, and so my mom and I did the same for Victor on his big day. Oh, the tears.

He asked me to give a speech at his wedding. As the older sister, I made sure to share a few embarrassing stories, but nothing so terrible. Here’s what I said:

It must have been my sixth or seventh birthday. I was standing in front of my birthday cake, and I said, “I wish for a baby brother.”

A few moments later, I said, “Or a puppy.”

I never got a puppy, so OK na rin na I got Victor. Pwede na.

As the older sister, I have many embarrassing stories about my baby brother. After a few drinks I will probably share them all. Vianca, let me know which one you want first, okay? Victor, I’m sorry, but there are two that I want to share here now.

I don’t know what Victor is like at work, or with his friends, but let me tell you, when we were growing up, he was such a drama queen. Pag pinagalitan siya, nasaktan siya, he doesn’t get what he wants, syempre iiyak. Then he would walk to the full-length mirror in our house, and watch himself cry. Drama. Now that he’s a grown man, I don’t think he cries in front of the mirror anymore, but when he’s annoyed with something he still whines a bit. “Ehhhh.” We refer to him as the Big Drama Boy. The Little Drama Boy is our son, Lucas.

Si Victor, he’s always been very concerned with his hair. As you know, we spent some time in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and when he was the right age, he started going to my school, which was so small that his classroom was just one building away from mine. I’d drop him off at his classroom before going to mine. Every single time, before he opened the door to his room, he would turn to me, half-asleep, to ask, “Maayos ba buhok ko?”

Those were the days when he was still shorter than me, so I could easily check on his hair.

In 2010, I got married to the most wonderful man, Oneal. Victor and Mommy walked me down the aisle. At the wedding, Victor said, “I don’t think a puppy could have done that.” I beg to differ, but it’s your wedding day, so we will agree to disagree.

That day, I really missed our dad, who passed away in 2005. But now that I think about it, in many ways Victor is a lot like our dad. Daddy was my co-conspirator, we would plan surprise parties and gifts for my mom. Daddy had a wicked sense of humor, as in politically incorrect, OMG. He was well-loved by friends and colleagues, and I see these things in my brother now. And that makes me so happy.

My brother and I are massively different on so many levels, but I know I can trust Victor with anything. One of the things Victor and I always tell each other is, “Don’t tell your mother.” Sorry, Mommy! If I’m in trouble, if I need help, if I did something stupid and I don’t want to tell our mom or my husband, I know I can call Victor. “Okay, don’t tell your mother but… nasunog yung frying pan. Again.”

If I need a drink, if I need to hide a dead body, anything at all, I can call Victor, and I know he will do his best to help me out. And Victor knows this goes both ways.

True story, in December 2016, I was pregnant, and about to give birth to my son, Lucas. We were in the hospital, the nurses were checking my contractions. I messaged Victor. Sabi ko, “So, nasa hospital na kami.” It was in the middle of the day, so I think he was at work, and medyo nag-panic siya. Pero after niya mag-panic, mga 30 minutes, the first thing he said was, “Ano, punta na kami diyan? Should I tell your mother?”

Siguro hindi ko muna ikwento yung mga “Don’t tell your mother” phone calls sa kin ni Victor. Baka mamaya, after a few drinks.

One of the things Victor and I share is actually something we inherited from our mother, who got it from our grandmother! Yung lola namin would have everything in her bag: posporo, nailcutter, screwdriver. Kandila! Our mom is the same—ballpen, notebook, scissors, payong. These days, that’s called EDC—everyday carry. Whatever it is you could possibly need—flashlight, antihistamine, paracetamol, eco bag, tumbler full of water, knives—Victor is sure to have. It’s pretty awesome, except for one thing. Pag magkasama kaming magkapatid, for some reason, uulan, and pareho kami’ng walang payong. This has happened at least two times! My husband says siguro we cancel each other out.

But really, the best thing about him is that he is my son’s absolute most favorite person in the whole wide world. Lucas calls him Nunu, because Lucas couldn’t say ninong when he was younger. To Lucas, Nunu is magic. Nunu can pull toys out of his ear. Nunu is the tallest, strongest, most pogi, bestest. Only Nunu is allowed to call Lucas a baby baby. Nunu is the best Jaeger to Lucas’ pilot.

Until today, Lucas refused to believe anything or anyone could be bigger than his Nunu. I think he still doesn’t believe that Nunu’s barkada is bigger than he is.

One time, during the pandemic, Victor distracted Lucas by playing videos of rollercoaster rides on YouTube. Then he put Lucas in a chair, picked up the chair and started rocking it, tilting it forward and back, side to side, up and down, and even making sound effects. Si Nunu yung rollercoaster. Lucas was shrieking with delight.

Hanggang ngayon, every time we see my mom and my brother, Lucas runs straight to his Nunu.

I think, when Lucas is older, he won’t come to me with his questions and stories anymore. He won’t ask for hugs or play time. He’ll have other things on his mind. But I think, when he gets to that age, he’ll still go to his favorite Nunu in the whole wide world, and he’ll start their conversations with, “Don’t tell my mother.” And I know Lucas will be fine, because he’s got Nunu watching his back.

So that’s my brother. Reliable, steady, like a rock. Always ready for anything—except maybe rain. Horribly funny—emphasis on horrible. Pogi. Not a puppy, but OK naman. The past 33 years have shown that I got a pretty good deal.

So Vianca, I think you got a good deal today. Just feed him, and I think you two will be more than okay.

Congratulations, love you both.