MANILA, Philippines - I?ve always been in awe of the special bond and love that exist between siblings, more so when one of them has special needs. The manner by which the life of one impacts the other cannot be measured.

This week, I met a young man who is holding his first one-man photo exhibit at the Archeology area of the Power Plant Mall on Feb. 22-28. Paulo Canivel?s exhibit, ?Emilio?s Corner: Speaking In Smiles,? is a tribute to his brother Emilio, who passed away eight years ago at the age of three, from leukemia. At the same time, the show is an advocacy for Down Syndrome, a condition Emilio was born with.

Paulo was 17 and a freshman in college at Ateneo de Manila University when Emilio was born in 1997. ?He turned my life around,? Paulo says.

The 28-year-old businessman-photographer says it was Emilio?s birth that made him look beyond himself.

?I was taking things easy, enjoying life, my grades weren?t all that great. I was young, I didn?t know any better,? Paulo recalls of that time. ?His birth made me reexamine my life closely. I suddenly realized that if my parents weren?t around, who would look after him??

Emilio, he says, turned his life around and got him through the tough Management Engineering course that he was enrolled in.

?I did so well after he was born that I made it to the Dean?s List. He really became my inspiration,? Paulo says.

But on July 30, 2000, in Paulo?s senior year, Emilio passed away. ?It?s like he just set me on the right course, and then he left,? he says.

Paulo credits his parents, Noel and Marie, for steering them through Emilio?s brief but meaningful life.

Before Emilio was born, his parents had already been prepared for the eventuality that their youngest would have special needs.

?Mom explained to us in the best way that she could [about Emilio?s situation],? he says. ?And dad, being the reader that he is, bought practically an entire library of books on Down Syndrome. By the time Emilio arrived, we already knew what to expect.?

Center of universe

Emilio clearly became the center of their universe and it was something the Canivel siblings took to quite naturally with no room for envy.

Paulo, together with siblings Chinie and Chixie, doted on his baby brother.

?When you have a child with special needs, there is nothing you want to do but take care of that sibling,? Paulo says. ?It?s all about being able to heed the call of someone who needed you. I learned to be just really giving.?

Drawing on those memories, Paulo decided to hold a photo exhibit so that others may know and understand better the world of the child with Down Syndrome.

Down Syndrome is a genetic condition caused by extra genetic material (genes) from the 21st chromosome. The extra genes cause certain characteristics that we know as Down Syndrome.

Individuals with Down Syndrome also have all the other genes given to them by their parents. As a result, they have a combination of features typical of Down Syndrome on top of the individual features from their parents. These include some degree of mental retardation, or cognitive disability and other developmental delays.

Some of the physical traits that are common but not always present are epicanthal folds over the eyes, flattened bridge of the nose, a single palmar crease and decreased muscle tone.

Inspiring work

The Down Syndrome Association of the Philippines helped Paulo set up the exhibit by putting him in touch with families who have children with this condition.

?Initially I was a little anxious about shooting the children but later on,? Paulo says, ?I just drew from my own experience and then everything just fell into place.?

Paulo hopes to be able to tour the exhibit to other big cities around the country. He also plans to keep doing exhibits of this nature for the next couple of years and come up with a book.

?It?s so inspiring to work with these kids. Many of them cannot even talk and they communicate only through their smiles,? he says. ?The shared experience and meeting all these children and their families was just fantastic.?

For Paulo and his family, there was nothing negative about the whole experience of having a sibling with Down Syndrome.

?The difficulties were brought about more by seeing him suffer through leukemia,? Paulo says. Over the years he has met many parents of children with Down Syndrome and he noticed that the ones who were more open and accepting of the condition right away were the same ones who were able to go beyond the limitations brought about by the condition.

?One out of every 800-1,000 births have the same condition, so don?t be ashamed of it,? he tells families whose children are newly diagnosed. ?There are people who understand where you are and would be very happy to share and help you out in your own journey. It?s a privilege in a sense to have a brother or a sister with special needs. It teaches you compassion and makes you become more human.?

Emilio would be proud.

For more information, please contact the Down Syndrome Association of the Philippines Inc. at tel. nos. 8959642 or 8953606; e-mail dsapi@hotmail.com

E-mail the author at cathybabao@gmail.com