Sam and AB's rivalry

I grew up as a junior brother to the warrior fighters in the neighborhood. My mom's first four kids are males, and the last born in the house is a girl. The sibling rivalry was between the first and second-born sons, and the age gap was only three years. The firstborn son is Sam, while the secondborn son is AB for the purpose of this content. The Nigerian culture encourages the younger siblings to address the older ones with respect by attaching a prefix before the actual name to signify superiority. Thankfully, the second-born son added the prefix, and how that came to be remains a mystery to me. My younger sister never added such for me, and we have remained cool, even though when I grew older at some point, I argued that with her.

The first challenge was that AB, the second born son, was admitted to an Air Force military school in Jos, a high school, while Sam, the first-born, attended a civilian high school. You can guess the kind of exposure AB had in the military school, and the only individual he thought it wise to vent it to was Sam. No matter the compromise that is to be made, we cannot expect the senior brother to subjugate his birth right to the younger one. Sam was as gentle as a dove, yet he had his birthright to protect.

A particular incident occurred between both of them that turned the whole neighborhood upside-down. There is a superstitious belief that when an individual's legs are crossed over by another, the one crossed will never grow tall again. Sam then crossed over AB's legs and refused to cross back his legs in order to revert the curse.

"You must cross my legs! I cannot remain short forever!" AB thundered, went haywire, and demanded that Sam cross his legs back, which Sam declined. What started as an argument in the house evolved into a fight that left the whole neighborhood surprised. People came around to separate the fight to no futility, and Sam refused to cross back AB's legs. AB kept charging at Sam, as though he would tear him apart. It was a drama that left everyone in awe.

"Help me beg both of them. These children will not kill me!" My mom lamented amidst sobs, rotating between Sam and AB every now and then. Eventually, concerned neighbors were able to plead with Sam to cross AB's legs a second time, and that was when peace reigned both at home and in the neighborhood.

Well, though the rivalry was harsh between both of my brothers, the love and bond were equally second to none. I remember an occasion where AB wore his khaki to Sam's school and put everyone on their toes a bit to defend his older brother. It was the police that came to salvage the situation, and luckily, the military men equally intervened and got AB out of the station as soon as possible.

IMAGE CREDIT IS MINE: SAM is now an officer 😂

The irony of the rivalry between Sam and AB is amazing! AB graduated from the Air Force military school and proceeded to a civilian tertiary institution, while Sam got admitted into the Nigerian Defense Academy, Kaduna. AB became an engineer, while Sam became a naval officer. Both are now about forty years of age, and the only relationship between them is one of love and respect. AB has become so gentle that he would apologize when stepped upon. Sam has been our shoulder to lean on and hovers over us, the younger siblings (including AB), like our second parent.

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