Which of these things is not like the other...

Family Picture

We used to tease each other that we were adopted.

No reason...just because.

Maybe we were bored, maybe we wanted to pick on each other, mostly because we were kids.... but every so often, one of us would tell another one of us, that they were adopted.

We didn't look alike after all. We all had varying degrees of lightness or darkness of skin coloring, different eyes, different face, different noses. People used to be surprised when they see us since we don't look like each other. About the only thing we had in common was our height and shoe size...give or take a half an inch.

I guess this started also because, for some reason, we never saw my mom in labor. One day she was in the office, then suddenly there was a baby. We usually visited the hospital right after the kids were born about a day after labor. Mom would already be all made up, hair all styled and curled and was already completely dressed when we came to see her. (Vanity, vanity!! )

There were a variety of "evidence" of course.

Jo Ann was the eldest. So of course not one of the us saw her born. There were no pictures of Mom pregnant with her or anything. She was the favorite since they "felt" guilty about the adoption and suddenly, a year after, I, the real child came along and so they had to make sure she never felt unwanted.

This was a popular plot of soap operas so it wasn't totally unbelievable.

I was "second child syndrome." I was the adopted one because they were "forced" to take me. That was why Eric and Jo Ann were the favorites and I wasn't.

Eric had to be given Dad's name just to assure him that he was theirs. They had to adopt a boy since they wanted one so bad and all they got were girls.

Lynette's birth also was "suspicious" since she was premature and came home two whole months after Mom came home. We said "they" just said Mom was pregnant in the first place so we would not suspect she was adopted. Sometimes we also said that someone mistakenly "switched" her in the hospital because she stayed so long there. We said that somewhere out there , there was a true Reyes whose place she had taken.

With Laurie, we just about got tired of inventing reasons. I think we just said she was found in a basket outside CCP or something and Mom took her in.

Anyway, all this had ended by the time I was in my late teens...

or so I thought.

One very hot summer day, Mom brought us to Cubao Farmer's Market. She had to buy a few things in the palengke and asked us to come along. We stayed in the van with the driver while Mom went in to buy her stuff.

We waited quite a while just bemoaning the heat and looking at the people in the surrounding area. I guess Mom decided to get more than a few things so that when she came back, she was being assisted by a strange girl, maybe in her mid twenties, who had helped her carry her purchases.

When we were all in the van. Mom told us that she had known that girl, lets call her Gina, for a very long time. Ever since Gina was a young girl in the palengke who would sell plastic bags for a peso.

Mom used to give her a bit extra because she pitied the girl and the Gina would offer to carry her bags as she went from booth to booth. Every Sunday, every week.

When Gina was old enough, she started helping out in one of the booths to sell its merchandize. But every time she would see Mom, she would leave her duties in the booth to help out Mom with her bags.

Then one Sunday, Gina told Mom she was getting married....and soon after, she became pregnant.

A few weeks passed when suddenly, she miscarried. She told Mom this on another Sunday and Mom felt bad for her. She was looking a little unwell when Mom asked her if there was anything else wrong. Apparently the midwife had advised her to see a doctor for a certain necessary procedure . However, she had no money and so didn't bother to go.

Mom decided to give her the money for the procedure and eventually, she took it. A few days later, she reported that the doctor had said that it was a good thing that she came because if she didn't undergo the procedure, it would have debilitated her.

She was so grateful for Mom's help.

A year later, she happily informed Mom that she was once again pregnant. After the mandatory nine months had passed, she gave birth to twin girls. She was surprised as she could not afford a doctor and didn't know she would have twins. A midwife attended her when the children came.

But poor Gina's little girls were tiny and one of them was very very sick. She had worried and fretted for her little girl because she could not afford medical treatment.

Mom again came to the rescue. She had helped Gina through financing treatment. The little girl was hospitalized and was treated in the hospital for days.

Then, one day, Gina was able to take her little girl home. She was so very grateful to Mom. A year later, she introduced Mom to the girl she had helped save.

Mom ended the story there.

Jo Ann then asked, "What happened to the other girl?"

Mom replied" Oh, she's home...asa bahay nila."

Then, from the very back of the car, a long, soft, slow, sigh was heard...

and Laurie said "Whew! I thought it was me!"

Laurie had listened very warily at Mom's story suspecting she might have been the other twin.

We started laughing and laughing and laughing.

Mom of course got really mad at us for making Laurie think she was adopted.

It was still funny though...

Which of these things belong together,
Which of these things are kinda the same
Can you guess which thing just doesn't belong here
Now its time to play our game ( it's time to play our game)