My sister has been there for me throughout the entirety of my life. Every age, every stage; she truly has been there for me through it all, and I couldn’t be more thankful for that. She is two years older than me, and my whole life it has always seemed like she’s been two steps ahead of me. Things always came easily for her, and she always excelled in everything she did. I was the exact opposite. I was always goofing around and found it really difficult to apply myself or take things seriously. Those personality differences caused a lot of fights as kids, but as we’ve grown older, our friendship has become one of the friendships that I value most in my life. I place tremendous value in our relationship because I recognize how rare it is to have a sister who is also a best friend. I will always listen when she wants to tell me about her day, I will always be in the audience clapping for every award she receives, and I will always be a helping hand when she needs one. She means the world to me and I truly would do anything for her. Even though I say that I would do anything for her, I have a bad habit of not doing the simple things like recognizing her and her many accomplishments. Because of that, I want to take the time to tell you about Taylor Pedersen, the best role model and sister that I could ever ask for.
Taylor graduated two and a half years ago from Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee, and immediately upon graduation took a job working for a start-up dry cleaning company. At the time, everyone close to her was really confused. Taylor was incredibly smart and had a million high-paying job offers. Everyone wondered why the heck she chose to take a low-paying job working for a dry cleaning company when she had plenty of other job opportunities available to her that would pay way more. Even though my family and I doubted her decision, she stuck with it knowing that the job would give her management skills that she wouldn’t be able to have at other jobs. She also had a gut feeling that this tiny startup would eventually get bought out by a bigger company. We thought it was crazy to choose a first career based on a “gut feeling.” Despite our concerns, she took the job anyway, hoping that if she played her cards right, it’d turn out to be the best decision of her life.
To make matters worse, the job brought her all the way to Dallas, Texas, and we live near Chicago, so no one was pleased with her moving so far away from home. Honestly, my whole family was just confused about her decision and it caused us to not be as supportive as we should have been. From our phone calls, I could tell that she was really lonely when she first moved. It was difficult for her to make friends and it was hard for her to be so far away from all of her family and friends. Instead of getting upset or giving up, she focused all of her energy on work. In due time, she got a promotion and eventually the tiny startup she worked for got acquired by Procter & Gamble, a Fortune 500 company. All of the things she wanted to happen happened because she had a vision and she worked relentlessly to make that vision a reality. It’s really disappointing thinking back to how everyone doubted her when she first took the job. Thankfully, she never let our negativity get in the way of her dreams. She believed in herself when no one else did. Even though it was hard for her, she stepped outside of her comfort zone and thrived. I couldn’t be more proud of her. She exemplifies a strong, independent woman. I know she will go on to do more amazing things because of her kindness, determination, and work ethic. I truly can’t wait to watch you change the world, sis.