Bro

There are many words I could use to describe myself at any given time.  And the word changes often depending on my day or situation.  But there is one word that has constantly applied to me since the day I was born: little sister.  (Ok, that was two words.)  I have just one sibling. My big brother B.

He is three years, three months and four days older than me.  And since I can remember, I have looked up to my brother.  Sure we had your normal sibling rivalry growing up, but I've always loved him. 

B and I have been through a lot together over the years.  When I was eight years old we moved across the country from California to Virginia.  He was the only person I knew aside from my two cousins who lived in the town.  He was my playmate, my friend, my protector.  A few years later our family experienced a random, traumatic event (especially traumatic for a ten year old little girl).  A construction worker building the house next door to ours burglarized our house, but my father returned home in the middle of the robbery.  My dad, being the smart, quick-thinking man that he is, wrote down the license plate number of the car parked in the driveway.  Luckily my dad was not hurt and the men just left the house and thanks to dad's quick thinking, the police were able to track the license plate number and find the men.  The night before the trial for the burglary one of the men came back to our house and shot multiple gun shots at our house.  One of the bullets penetrated the front wall of the house and stopped at the wall that lead into my bedroom, on the wall where I was sleeping in my bed.  Again, luckily no one was injured, but I was traumatized.  I couldn't sleep alone for months.  So my big brother let me sleep in the extra twin bed in his room.  He did all he could to make me feel safe again.

We then moved to Massachusetts before I began the sixth grade.  Again, I knew no one and B was my only friend.  As a freshman in high school, most big brothers wouldn't want anything to do with their little bratty sister, but not B.  He was always there for me.  He came to my swim meets to support me and drove me around when he got his license.  But then in 1996 he graduated high school and moved to Richmond to attend college and I moved to Georgia, where I again knew no one.  But this move was different because my big brother wasn't there with me.  It was by far the hardest move we made.  But we stayed in touch and have only grown closer over the years.

I was lucky enough to live in the same town with B for a few years after law school.  And as I've already mentioned on here, he moved to California in June.  This time he was the one to make a big move and it has been difficult in many ways.  I wish I could have moved with him to be a friend and a support, like he has always been to me over the years.  But my life is here, in Atlanta.  So we'll have to settle for visits, which luckily we've been able to have multiple times since June.

I just returned from ten days in California visiting B with my mom and Lukas.  For me, it was a wonderful trip.  I was able to see where B lives (which is in a house with an amazing view of the ocean in a great town north of San Diego), see where Stu goes to school and even get a massage at the Chopra Center where B now works.  He shared his new city with us - taking us for walks on the beach, to his favorite restaurants and stand-up paddle boarding, his new exercise.  But mostly, we stayed at his house and talked and just spent time together.  It was precious time and I truly now believe the your time is the best gift you can give anyone.

I wish he still lived close by.  But I wish that for selfish reasons.  He's pursuing his passion and career and I'm so proud of him for taking the steps to reach his dreams. 

I love my big brother and am sad to have left him.  But now I can look forward to our next trip together, whenever that may be.  And while the two words "little sister" describe me, when I think of my big brother, I now also think of the word friend.  Not everyone is lucky enough to have a close bond with their sibling.  But I am blessed to have him as my brother, and as my friend.