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The Hindu : “Good evening ka! Naan goodgirlka,” lisps Poorni, all of 21. And, her parents and brother and sister are thrilled at her progress. With a bank manager brother and an engineer twin sister, there were enough reasons for Poorni to feel left out. But, at home, her going to a special school was as important as the other children heading to college.The Ramanathans have two daughters. The older Ramalakshmi, is a special child. Her sister Rajyalakshmi, 7, is all there for her sister and has been trained to take over her care when their mom is out of town.Such harmonious co-existence did not happen easily. It took years of training. The relationship between siblings is often fragile and fraught with emotions. In homes where one of the children is special, parents have to work overtime. They have to first learn to deal with the child, and also help the sibling come to terms with it. It could mean sacrifices and tears, but, the end result is well worth all the effort.Poorni’s mom went through a lot to keep the children together. And, today, she says that Poorni’s siblings are her most vocal supporters. “Even if I scold her, they are quick to tell me to be patient.” Priya Ramanathan says the trick is to never differentiate. “We treated them alike and told the younger one that akka can do only this much, and that you have to adjust. She now knows that her sister goes to a special school, and can’t help her with her homework like other akkas. And, when they fight, we don’t interfere.”Is it easy to achieve that kind of normalcy? “No. It needs to be worked on. When the younger one wanted to go to a hostel like her friends, I asked her who would take care of akka. She should know what goes into her sister’s care,” says Priya, who runs…More