As the backdrop to our growing pains, our childhood homes can evoke a myriad of emotions and memories. For international personality Bryanboy, his relationship to his old home in the Philippines is one wrought with complicated feelings, which he has learned to appreciate as an adult.
READ: Bryanboy Writes Heartwarming Letter to Childhood Home in Perfect Magazine
In Perfect magazine’s sixth issue themed “home,” editor-in-chief Bryanboy began his letter with a look back on his upbringing in the Philippines. The fashion personality recalled growing up as the eldest of four with his working-class family, where they lived in a three-bedroom bungalow on the outskirts of Manila. According to him, he had shared a bunk bed with his younger sister.
Bryanboy, whose real name is Bryan Yambao, revealed that he was “embarrassed” about his family’s living conditions, and often lied about their lifestyle as a child.
“...I did not match the image I portrayed to the outside world. To fit in with the cool kids, I acted as though I lived with the gilded and fabulous rather than a single-income household, leaving my parents almost penniless after paying the mortgage and the car costs, and sending me and my siblings to a private Catholic school,” he wrote.
“I lied about where I lived, I lied about the car my dad drove, I lied about what my dad did for a living. I was a rebellious, outlandish, troubled teenager who dreamed and wanted big. And to this day, 20 years after I moved out, the shame I had for my childhood home—which, in hindsight, was filled with unconditional love that I took for granted—still haunts me.”
As he envisioned, Bryanboy would soon make a name for himself as an adult in the international fashion scene. His feelings toward his upbringing have since transformed.
“Homes are guardians of our memories. They form the stage upon which the theatre of our lives plays out, bearing the footprints of our past,” he wrote. “As we grow, our homes also transform, bearing witness to our changing lives. Sometimes, the sensation of feeling at home isn’t tethered to a physical space… It’s the sense of connection, an unspoken bond, a space where we feel seen, heard, and accepted.”
He capped off the letter with an invite to peruse the issue, calling back to his younger self in his family home. “I know my 13-year-old self would do the same in my bunk bed, with a flashlight late at night, munching on the Toblerone bar I’d nicked from the corner shop.”
An inspiring read, Bryan!
Hey, Preview readers! Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Tiktok, and Twitter to stay up to speed on all things trendy and creative. We’ll curate the most stylish feed for you!
