Making Stars

i met you through family.

If there was a time I definitely didn't look forward to in life, it was this one. The time in which people of various backgrounds and representative stands would come forth and offer the best of their men as a fit husband unto the hand of their leader's eldest daughter. Me.

My dad wasn't a particular fan of the gesture either, and he found no need to rush me or my siblings into intimate relationships. He was not afraid to speak openly about his policies when it came to marriage and social or political statuses, and he was especially intent to correct those who believed him to be making an egregious decision when it came to his own children. Despite the many times he and I bumped heads or couldn't see eye to eye, my father never once made me doubt his loyalty, his support in my life, and for that I will forever be grateful.

However, I knew age was beginning to catch up to him. My heart ached just a bit more everyday seeing that certain small tasks were beginning to become a burden, but he was always too stubborn to ever mention it. He was the provider, the protector, it was an automatic that went without say, and he refused to allow the natural matters to stop him now. My mother knew it too, but she knew everything like the back of her hand. I suppose that was her job, to be the backbone, the light at the end of the tunnel when the path seemed too dark.

She, like Dad, was firm on having our relationships develop from our own will, platonic or not, but I could read her eyes when she'd thought I wasn't paying attention. As the eldest, I would be given the option to take on leadership after Dad first, but if I declined the choice would go to my siblings in the order of our births. I was prepared, I knew that eventually that day would come, and we'd all be primed for the juncture. Both my mother and father had trained us for these times, but I hadn't initially considered the way my decisions would effect them.

Mom always had separate talks with me from a young age to now. Often my younger sister, Tani, and brother, Joe, always got into irritable moods when she tried to get into depths with them, so I often received those conversations—not that I minded. Any moment Mom took to teach me something I absorbed just to keep stored in my memory. A mother always had much wisdom and I refused to take the opportunities for granted.

"Asking for help does not make you weak, Tui," I recalled her saying to me once. We were eating lunch together beneath a palm tree, its thick leaves stretched far above us. I originally believed her to be referring to my academics until she said, "Your siblings are your team. Eventually, the time will come when your dad and I must pass the leadership on, and it will be up to you all on how to function and cooperate when it happens. But, at the end of the day, you are the overseer for them, they look to you for guidance, so don't simply dismiss them nor forget they are there. You are all almost of age, Joseph and Beatrice still in school but soon to stand alongside you and Tani. I trust God to guide your future, but please stick together."

I hated when she'd talk like that. It wasn't my favorite thing to remember reality and think of Mom and Dad eventually passing onto the next life, leaving me to fend for my family with the knowledge they'd provided me throughout the years. While Mom wasn't wrong, a lot of times I questioned the moon and stars if I would be able to balance such important matters at once. Being a good leader for my land and a good sister to my kin.

That wasn't what stood out to me. It was when Mom had begun to speak of a husband that I became like Tani and Joe. "Teuila, I'm not badgering you about a relationship that I think would be perfect for you, so fix your face," she reprimanded with a crossed look. I managed a fake smile to which my mother continued, "That is another relationship that will be especially important to not compromise, especially because of the workload that comes with being a leader."

"Mother, I'm not gonna die in my tasks," I drawled sarcastically. Mom and I had a steady connection, so outside of the public eye, I was able to be comfortable with her.