37 Things I like about You

What do you gift to someone who’s given you everything? My sister turned 37 yesterday and I’d been struggling, all week long with what to gift her until yesterday morning, when I finally figured it out. So here goes.

Dear Ausi Eliza, here are:

8 things I love about you:

1. Your butter chicken recipe.

2. How your mind works overtime when you have a new business idea.

3. That you leave me a doggy bag when you go out.

4. That you love unconditionaly.

5. That you’re unbelievably forgiving.

6. How much you sacrifice for your siblings.

7. That you introduced me to reading.

8. That you’re fearless.

My favourite memories with you:

1. Your turn to cook when we were young.

2. How you slept with me and held me when we lost our brother.

3. Every time you brought me a Ladybird storybook from your high school or a rainbow cake from Shoprite when I was little.

4. Sitting with me the day I was preparing for my job interview.

5. The day you cleaned my face with an oil cleanser from Dermalogica.

6. The day I introduced you to Pinterest and we spent the entire morning obsessing over it.

7. Every lazy Sunday morning when we watch fashion shows and YouTubers on TV.

8. Your first rented place in Maseru. It was Friday night and I’d come to visit you. We were sleeping on a mattress on the floor, with O-FM playing back to back pop music.

Things that look the best on you:

1. Sunset orange

2. Minimal makeup and earrings

3. Pallazo pants and kitten heels.

Best things I learned from you:

1. Jeans must be ironed without fail.

2. How to better control my emotions.

3. How to power through failure.

4. The importance of a signature fragrance.

5. How to let go of a business that isn’t working.

6. How to give life to a living space.

7. How to make roses look fuller.

1 thing you do that makes me laugh:

1. How you get the lyrics of your favourite songs wrong!

3 things I wish I could change about you:

1. Cook more, you know I’m hopeless.

2. The number of cats you own (eight too many)

3. STOP LOSING YOUR KEYS!

4 things I wish for you this year:

1. That you could say ‘no’ more often.

2. That you get more sleep.

3. That you network and travel even more.

4. That your boundaries are clearer.

Things I don’t tell you enough:

1. Your positive energy is infectious.

2. I wish I were as smart as you.

3. For the love of god, read my blog!

My promise:

There’s nothing that you can do that will ever stop me from loving you and; there’s absolutely nothing you can say to stop me from stealing your clothes and shoes!

Happy birthday sis! May you have a good year full of love, lots of good food and happiness!!

Love, Nono