Nostalgia is a funny thing. If I look back far enough, I have fond memories and not-so-fond memories. Most memories are what we make of them after the event, of course.
Friday night I cheered my one and only little sister on as she walked in her high school graduation. The evening ceremony reminded me of when I graduated from high school. Not that this post is really about my graduation.
When I graduated high school, my sister wasn't born yet. With about five months to go, my sister was someone I had not yet met, came to the ceremonies, and didn't so much as give me a card. I couldn't have been more excited that I would have a sister soon.
Not to diminish the value of having great brothers, but a sister was something I had wanted for a long time. Too bad she came along as I was embarking on new chapters in my living arrangements and who would have known at that time that she would move to Vegas in only a few years. But I still remember holding her and wanting nothing but the best for her.
She was always a cute girl but Ian and I knew she was more than cute. She was always incredibly smart and sensitive. She could picked out Bob Marley on the stereo or by any assortment of pictures by the age of 2, which is a heck of a lot better than the classical composers. She never ceased to amaze me as she kept her life in much better order than the sometimes chaotic upbringing our mom invoked. It is a testament to her beliefs and her strength to see her develop into an increasingly independent woman.
We haven't lived in the same state for a long time. High school unavoidably interferred with much quality time with my sister as I was not as cool or entertaining as her friends, but I still was there waiting in the wings to be her brother. I remember the time I gave her my sincerest beliefs about ignoring the mean girls, the girls who thought money mattered most, and how I would stomp on them if Alex wished it. It was one of those moments where I was able to impart guidance, to bestow sibling love, and to offer to flex some muscle to defend my sister.
I still am there. And, I think, she knows I always will be.
Congratulations Alex.
- Your brother
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