Brotherly Acceptance and Pride Anonymous

I find it humorous when my family debates who looks more Asian versus White, me or my twin brother. My parents also joke that Brandon and I would be even taller or better at math had it not been for the “shortcomings” each contributed to our genetic equation. However, when comparing my brother to me, that is where the humor ends.

While we were born extremely premature, weighing two pounds, Brandon suffered greater complications in the NICU than I did. Despite being born only minutes apart, our lives quickly diverged and we have been on different paths ever since. Brandon suffered from a brain hemorrhage that left him with learning disabilities. He has also been diagnosed with autism and suffers from epilepsy. I have watched him struggle with many things others take for granted. For Brandon, school is much more challenging and college far less likely.

Being around Brandon my entire life, I didn’t comprehend these differences until I began to observe the normative behaviors of my peers, which were in stark contrast to the manner in which he behaved. Brandon's social challenges, early lack of coordination, and absence of empathy towards others left me agonizing over how others thought of him, and subsequently, of me. It was not...