Join Emma as she talks to Pollyanna about the dynamics between her siblings, self-care time, and the major role faith plays in their lives.

Emma: With so many siblings naturally, you’re going to feel closer with some of them than others but, how do you intentionally bridge the gaps and closeness? How do you make the effort to just involve them more in your life?

Pollyanna: For my family, I definitely see three clusters. One with two of my brothers, two with my sister and I, three with the youngest ones, making it three different clusters.

From the perspective of bridging the gap, I’ll say that my dad does an excellent job in this area. I really see his intention with how much he tries to bring all of us together. It can be very hard, especially since we have such a huge age range. So, trying to please the older ones, when we’re doing baby stuff or childish activities, is so high and vice versa.

Through activities such as sports, which taught us sportsmanship, or going on vacation, stuff like that has really helped us to understand one another, yet have fun at the same time. For me, personally, I’m still trying to learn how to bridge the gap, because I think during our teen years it can be extremely difficult. I think, especially in the Asian context. Sometimes we find it hard to communicate with our siblings, especially when we reached teenage level.

I will say, I’m still very thankful that we have younger siblings. This is what is so nice about having a huge family, our younger siblings are actually helping us bridge the gap with how playful and innocent they still are. That really brings so much joy and fun to our family. It really helps us older siblings to connect with one another more.

Emma: How do you make time for yourself especially with so many people in the house?

Pollyanna: As I mentioned earlier, I love waking up earlier especially since I’m currently waiting to get into university. Before that I had been studying as a homeschooler and I think getting into like routine, finding the perfect plan for me, I realized that waking up early is one of my favorite things to do, just because I get that quietness. My focus and productivity level increase. I understand that sleeping late is also unhealthy. So, I’m happy that I’m actually a morning person. Besides schooling I also enjoy doing some other activities. I’m very into ballet and also nutrition. So we’re into like plant based nutrition my family and we’re all vegan.