I grew up as the youngest child and only girl in my family. I’m lucky to have two older brothers, who are simultaneously the most annoying people on the planet and the best people I know. Although I complain about them often, I don’t know where I would be without them and I am extremely thankful to have both of them in my life for many reasons.
They taught me how to laugh at myself
With their constant teasing and infectious laughter, it’s hard not to laugh along (even if it’s at my expense). My brothers taught me never to take life too seriously and to laugh about my mistakes instead of stress over them.
…And how to defend myself
My brothers are allowed to make fun of me as much as they want, but they immediately come to my defense if someone else attempts to tease me. They taught me how to stand up for myself and make sure no one walks over me. And if for some reason I can’t defend myself, I always have two bodyguards willing to protect me.
They know me really well
They have no problem calling me out for lying or being rude, but they will also tell me if they think I’m not trying hard enough or if I’m not giving myself enough credit. They know what I want to achieve in life, and they encourage me to push past the limits I place on myself.
They give good advice
With age differences of six and two years between my brothers and me, they’ve gained their fair share of wisdom. I especially needed their advice after starting college this year. I knew I could always count on my brothers to help me with anything from dealing with living away from home to how to survive classes.
We have the best inside jokes
Facial expressions, handshakes, silly phrases, weird dance moves, everything is funnier with them. After over eighteen years together, we’ve accumulated way too many inside jokes to count, referencing everything from our childhood to our favorite basketball team.
They support me unconditionally
It doesn’t matter if I fail a test, can’t make a decision, or complain endlessly about how stressful college is. My brothers will support me no matter what, and help me feel better about whatever my decisions are.
We’re a team
Gone are the days when we would tattle to get each other in trouble: now we work together to ask our parents for permission, make excuses to avoid chores, or opt out of events we don’t want to go to. It’s all for one and one for all, so if you mess with one of us, you mess with all three of us.
My brothers mean the world to me and although I don’t tell them often enough, I love them with all my heart. No matter how far apart we are from each other or how old we get, we’ll always have each other’s backs.
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