She was always the one to embarrass me. Always the one to bring the Ariel Barbie into my room to tell my sixth grade friends how I still played with dolls. She was the one who kicked ex-boyfriends out of my house; always the one to beg to be included in backyard summer barbeque hide-n-seek games, and always the one to blame the lack of ice cream in the house on my totally innocent self. She’s the one to call me out on my overuse of the word, “literally” and she has no problem telling me, “nope” when I ask if the dog went searching the house for me while I was gone. She’s the one to tell me my perfume is too strong and that my ponytail isn’t “cute messy”…just messy. She’s my little sister.
Now she’s the one to tell me it’s a bad idea to drive to the beach at 2 am…and then she’s the one to shake her head when I get in trouble for doing it anyway. She is extremely honest to the point where sometimes I wonder if she’s actually being serious or not. She has known me her entire life, which is way too long to care about hurting my feelings when I try on a dress that my mom would just NOT approve of; and she doesn’t spend a moment in hesitation. She never even attempts to start a sentence with “this might come off the wrong way but…” like a polite roommate might. She has seen me in most stages of life; from the pipsqueak grade-schooler who ignored her until she cried, to the assertive college student who stood up for her when those awkward high schoolers made choice comments about her braces. She’s the voice of reason in my life, someone other than my forever-right-about-everything mother.
She’s four years younger, but always the one to know what is acceptable and what isn’t. She’s the one who copies me and strives to be just like me, but outdoes me every time. If I’m the President of Student Council, then she’s the President of National Junior Honor Society. If I’m working a crowd, she’s taking notes and introducing herself to people she doesn’t even know. It’s a weird thing to think that this single person has influenced my life in such a huge way – and I guess I’m writing about her now because, well, I miss her! I’ve found that I absolutely love to talk about her and brag about her life. She’s the best cheerleader I know, the most flexible ballerina I’ve ever met, and the smartest girl in the world.
Who knows if she’ll be a Belle or a Domer, but South Bend would be honored to have such a brilliant hard-worker. She can do anything she sets her mind to and as much as it totally irks me that she can glance at a sheet of paper and within five minutes have the Periodic Table of Elements memorized, I don’t envy the A’s she gets on her assignments. Because she is the smartest girl in the world. I’m glad I’m her sister because my mistakes and experiences have given her the where-with-all to know exactly what to do and what not to do in any given situation. She knows not to fall into drama from high school friends who leave you out of the prom party bus, she knows how to live in a convent in New York City by yourself, she knows what Starbucks drink to order when you don’t really want coffee, and she knows that Publix Double Dark Chocolate Cookie Quarry Fro-yo is pretty much the solution to any problematic situation. Or just any situation, really.
To anyone who thinks it would be a good idea to mess with my little sister, then I really hope they are ready to come face-to-face with the most evil creature of an angry big sister because this danger zone is one that the offender will 100% not be returning form. It’s fun when you finally get close with your sister. After all the years of being bothered by her desperate plea to play Monopoly, or her constant pestering to go on bike rides, it’s actually pretty fun to float in the ocean with the closest person in the world to you. It’s a good time chit-chatting about the cheerleader drama and the way dad expects us to not make fun of his balding, gray spot. She’s my precious, little sister and I thought it was time she read an article about something other than my selfish, rambling feelings. Because, like every supportive sister should, she diligently reads every single one.Â
Photos provided by the author
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