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Nicole Heredia

Professor Ann Fillmore

English 1010

July 19, 2022

Fragile Shines the Brightest

My life goes on as usual, go to school or work and then go home and be with my family.

But something’s different this year around (two years ago). I come home and I hear screams and

someone crying; it’s my sister, April. My sister yells, “I hate my life, and you two (my mom and

me) aren’t making my life anymore easier!” I’ve noticed some changes that have been happening

to my sister. It wasn’t any sort of phase that a teenager usually goes through, no this was

different. It’s as if I that wasn’t my usual sister. Of course, we already fight now and then, but

this was unlike any fight we’ve been through. I asked, “What’s going on, what’s happening?

Talk to me otherwise I won’t know what to say or do. What do you want me to do?” She said,

“Leave me alone.” She has closed her door so hard as if she momentarily thought it was made

out of fragile wood.

I’ve got to witness the beginning of my sibling’s presence and the preciousness memories

that came into my life after. So, knowing my sister who isn’t her usual self, I had to catch up

with my mom and asked, “Why is April acting like this? What were guys fighting about before I

came in?” “I don’t know why she’s acting like this, I only asked her one question and she was

filled with anger and rage,” my mom said with such a unique worry face. I mean nobody noticed

if she was going through something the past few days, but I guess we caught it by the time that

door shut.

My mom then decides to have April visit a therapist and see how that works out.

Unfortunately, after a few therapist visits, April said, “This shit isn’t working out.” And I asked,
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Nicole Heredia

Professor Ann Fillmore

English 1010

July 19, 2022

“Why not?” She was able to confirm with me that the problem wasn’t the therapist, it was herself

that there was something medically wrong with her. I couldn’t believe it, the only sister I’ve

known the longest wasn’t able to figure out what was wrong with her. That she knew something

was wrong medically, but she didn’t want to be sent out to talking to random people about her

problems.

As problems kept rising, the more depressed mood April was hiding in her room. I really

felt like she purposely hid in her room to avoid her shouting towards us. But I knew she was still

thinking about us and how to avoid screaming towards us. I was filled with guilt and grief

watching my sister in pain not physically, but mentally she was in pain. My love for my sister is

so strong, but can easily be broken into pieces. Next thing we knew, she was an underage girl

who was staying out late, and not just till midnight late, late as in she would come back till the

next morning late.

One of these late nights she came home drunk. I asked her, “What the hell is your

problem, making us worry like that. Why did you do this, you could’ve been a lot more trouble

than just mom yelling at you.” She couldn’t give me a response at the time, but I couldn’t

swallow the reality that I was seeing. It almost became a nightmare to enter into the house that I

use to just laugh with my sister in. I told my mom to take her to the doctor and she what’s going

on with her mental state. I could see the look on my mom’s face that she didn’t want to think of

that reality of mental issues and what they could do to a person such as my sister. However, what
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Nicole Heredia

Professor Ann Fillmore

English 1010

July 19, 2022

I knew was that my sister just needs some help from a professional who could tell us what’s

wrong with her mental state.

A few days later, after the doctor visit April was recently diagnosed with ADHD and was

given a prescription of Adderall. Surprisingly, it helped her overcome her outburst of screams

and depression. Before she was diagnosed with ADHD, she was filled with depression and you

could even see it on her face. It would be a week straight where I would enter into the house and

hear April constantly fighting with our mom. They would both be throwing stuff around or

shutting doors really hard that I could hear it outside of our house. She would end up crying for

long hours and we couldn’t bear a conversation without her yelling first. However, this time is

different, April was finally at the point where she was self-assured of the choices she was

starting to make in her life. She has successfully opened up her own tooth gem business and has

a consistent schedule for yoga. April has finally kicked out the negativity in her life such as

friends who were never really friends, less on social media, and most importantly, was back to

being my best friend and the memorable little sister I have in my life.

The consequences of fighting do prime us up to mental and physical health issues. If we

kept fighting the way we were all fighting, we would’ve been on our separate ways eventually.

However, it was never a decision to begin with, instead I fought for my sister and continue

fighting for her and will for an eternity if I have to because that is how much love I have for my

sister which is boundless. Forgiveness benefits mental and physical health issues, but I was never
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Nicole Heredia

Professor Ann Fillmore

English 1010

July 19, 2022

eyeing for forgiveness from my sister, instead I was looking for the sister I’ve known since the

beginning of her birth. Through my eyes, her fragileness is what shines the brightest.