To my little brother.. who's not so little anymore..

Dorogoy Ilusha,

I've been trying to figure out what to write to you for your big entry into the post-teen years, and it has dawned on me that writing something personal to someone (especially when that someone is my one and only sibling in the whole wide world, and he happens to be reading this on a rather important day in his life), in a public way, is really, really hard! Maybe it's my lack of experience of all this Facebook nonsense, but it's an incredibly daunting task!

So first and foremost, of course HAPPY BIRTHDAY!! I wish you so many wonderful things! At the age of 3 you already seemed older and wiser than me in so many ways, at the age of 15 you would give me goodbye hugs and tell me not to do anything too stupid, at the age of 20 - I don't even know what to make of you!

I know that my first "big trip" overseas happened at almost the same age as you are now, and I know that it changed me in ways that are too long to list in general, let alone here. But I also know that just as in absolutely everything else, in our travels, we are completely different. I went to Europe with no money in my bank account, and an acute sense of having no idea about anything at all. You're going off to work in a job that doesn't involve cleaning toilets, picking fruit, changing diapers, handing out fliers, or doing any of the other things that "travel job" usually entails. You're going off to conquer a small part of the world in style (relatively speaking), and it's an amazing achievement. One that I experienced only recently.

So what can I wish you? I wish for you to live your dreams. Our dreams have always been different, and it has taken me a long time to accept that a different dream from mine is in no way inferior to mine. You're not me, and you've always done things your way. What we have in common, one of the greatest gifts given to us by mum and dad, is the freedom that we know we have to be who we are, to say what we want, and to do as we think best. It's not as common as we might think. There's not many parents in the world who raise their kids with the belief that not only must the kid constantly be learning, but the parent can often learn just as much from the kid. We've been blessed with enough confidence to make us borderline cocky, but (hopefully) with the knowledge that it's also OK to be wrong. Though of course, I'm never wrong. =)

I think I'm rambling, and it's not what I want. I want you to be happy. I want us to be friends. I want you to learn so much from this experience, to come out of your comfort zone and see where it takes you. To meet people from different worlds to you, with different opinions, different ideas. To really and truly live every moment. To come back a little more worldly, a little more humble. To fall in love and have your heart broken (not a common wish, I suppose, but one of the greatest lessons one can learn). To meet people who challenge your mind. To have fun in ways you can't yet imagine. To laugh with the people you meet. To love the life you live, and to live the life you love.

Ok. I think that's enough from me. I love you lots, and can't wait to see you properly.

Have a wonderful time!!!

xxxx Lena.

PS. We wanted to show you that your birthday is being celebrated in all the corners of the earth.. so we decided upon a game - a "Where's Wally?" type of fiasco.. except it's a "where's the reference to your 20th?" .. enjoy.. =)