Hounslow family photo captures siblings' goofy bond after mother's death

A photograph on the writer's desk shows them and their only sibling, probably aged six and 13, perched on the lurid bedspread of their grandparents' spare room in Hounslow, smiling from either side of a bootleg calendar image of supermodel Cindy Crawford.

The brother is seven years older and, the writer says, has long been both a willing co‑conspirator and a surrogate parent: he spoiled the secret of Santa Claus, explained sex, gave a first sip of beer, chastised the writer for sneaking cigarettes, and, as a 22‑year‑old medical student, advocated for their mother when she was diagnosed with cancer while the writer was 15. Since their mother died in 2013, family photos have become a source of bittersweet pain—those with her recall her wide smile and presence, those without underline her absence.

That particular picture, the writer adds, escapes the binary of presence and absence. Absurdly 1990s and without full sense, it nonetheless captures their goofy sibling bond and the private world they made—passing the video‑game controller, watching late‑night TV or cruising in the brother's Fiat to UK garage—and serves as a reminder that, now their mother is gone, they still have each other.

Key Topics

Culture, Brother, Hounslow, Cindy Crawford, Family Photograph, Cancer