*Disclaimer: I know too many words on a page scare
ya, but I’ve included a few pics at the end to reward ya for makin it to the end without scrolling or skimming*
You foo,
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!! Did
you know that YOU are the guy I’ve talked about the most this year?? After God, of course.. not tryin to be
TOTALLY ridiculous or blasphemous. Your ears should’ve been burning constantly back at home as so many of
my sentences began with or included “my brother.” Seriously, my squad- and teammates have
heard from month one about Brian Go Chiu and my obsessive adoration for him. I don’t know why I love you so much – I mean,
you never call, email, facebook, write, or visit me! Hahaha. (While we’re on the subject of genetics, thank goodness you didn’t
inherit my gene for cheesy writing). Anyway, even though you do fall short in the area of initiating
communication, for you, I have unconditional tolerance, forgiveness, grace, and
love. I guess God knew I needed someone
to teach me these things.. thank ya for
allowing me to learn quickly what means to give to and take care of someone
besides myself. I’ve had 24 years of that
kinda education, and I’m still waiting for my degree..
I remember at this time last year, I was calling you from
training camp in Gainesville, GA while you celebrated with your friends in
Austin. Can’t believe I was preparing
for the WR then and I’m almost done with it now. Craziness. So I’ve missed several birthdays altho it ain’t my
fault that you spent two of ’em in Austin becoming more highly
educated – or what do they call it, becoming a MASTER of public
accounting. Well, public accounting or
not, you’ve been the “master” in your network of family and friends for years
now, and not sure there’s an end in sight.
Brian, as I’ve been gone this year on a journey of self- and
Christ-discovery, I’ve heard it mentioned that all of us believers have Christ
in our middle name. For ex: I’m Stephanie Christ Chiu because He lives inside me
and I’m part of Him. While that in
itself is something I still gotta wrap my mind around from time to time, it got
me thinking about the significance of names.. I’m glad that we share the same
middle name – not just Christ, but Go. It makes me proud to be a Go Chiu with you and to have that same
inheritance and bloodline… as well as the inheritance that comes from being His
child (that’s a given). I’ve missed you
many times this year and been reminded of you plenty of times as well: in moments of adventure (riding motorcycles in
Vietnam), ordinary every day moments (eating legit pho, again in Vietnam),
people’s character traits (Dave’s neatness), someone’s clothes (Cameron’s Mt
Hardware jackets or Nick’s Patagonia pullover), when I first turn on my computer
(seeing as how the pw was set up by you) and random things in my pack (like the
first aid kit your prepared or the random “necessities” I still find that you hid). Seriously, it’s hard not to feel your
presence when the jacket I’ve carried around all year (which btw has been
totally worth it and indeed one of my smartest brings) is yours, all my long
sleeved shirts (all TWO) are yours, and 1/3 of my t-shirts are either yours or
from you. Lemme just say what a hit the
iJesus and Run Around Naked shirts have been… I’ve never doubted your taste. Liz has been the second owner of several of
your clothes, as we make exchanges throughout the year to add variety to our
wardrobe, so it’s cool to see your stuff circulating and showing up in someone
else’s pictures. Also, I have you to thank
for spending the last month, heck, down to the last day, going with me to test
equipment/buy all my gear, pack my backpack, set up my laptop, etc. You had your hand literally in every detail. While I’m on a roll, I might as well come out
and say “you were right” in terms of some stuff I sent home in LA that you told
me to keep in case I needed them later on in the year… and how you rattled off
a list of things to buy in LA when I was completely lost and forgetful, covering
all the bases for me.
I’m not sure how this year’s been for you with me gone (don’t
wanna place importance on my absence altho it must have sucked, right??), but
the transition from student to official robot of corporate America couldn’t
have been easy. While you continue to
juggle work with studying for the CPA and trying to maintain a social life (or
simply your sanity), I continue to pray that you know the strength, rest, and comfort
you have in Him. When you’re struggling
to find motivation, trying not to be overcome with exhaustion, questioning your
abilities or possibly the meaning of life (both of which I’ve wasted much time and
many brain cells on), etc. remember that life is a series of seasons and each
season comes with trials and lessons, but they change and you change.. while He
remains unchanging in how much He loves you, searches you, tests you,
disciplines you, and knows you. I wish I
could’ve been there for you when you needed advice, encouragement, a listening
ear or just someone to stroke your cheek and slap your butt. This
year, God’s sent many younger brothers across my path, maybe when I needed my
own the most. I think any of my squadmates would’ve enjoyed ya if you’d been on the Race. I’m excited for a reunion
that includes seeing your domestic skills at work in prepping our Thanksgiving
feast, but mostly I’m looking forward to doing life together again, until I
figure out what to do next. Btw, be prepared to talk at length about what your life has looked like these past 11 months, as I’ll probably genuinely wanna hear every detail and initially won’t wanna talk about my year cuz I won’t know where to begin. Then be prepared to listen to me ramble, with random stories or thoughts that likely won’t flow or connect well, when I’m reminded of something from the year and need to share or verbally process it. Don’t worry, you’ve already had 24 years of training in pretending to attentively listen.
Thanks for being someone I can genuinely miss and never tire of. Until I meet a guy who captures my thoughts,
attention, heart and endearment, I have you (now you know your purpose in life) – a guy who’s real,
sensitive, enjoyable, unique, easy to talk to, comfortable, willing, gracious,
serving, fun, thorough, respectful, deeply caring, considerate, teachable, among other adjectives. It has been a joy growing up alongside you – having a brother whose character I don’t question and whose future I am
confident will be more than you expect or imagine.
So here’s to a birthday dedication from another continent…hopefully
next year won’t mean even further distance, as we seem to move from separation
by state to separation by sea. But my
sentiments are with you today more than most days (if even possible). Hope you’ve read this whole thing, u foo! See you in about a month… ahem that means I’ll
probably need my room back.
LOVE,
