As the oldest sibling, it’s easy to believe that you automatically become the one that your brother and sister look up to, but that’s not always the case. From a young age, my sister became the type of person that I could only hope I would be one day. As the oldest, it’s not easy to admit that you strive to be more like your younger sister but in my case, I’m proud to say that.
My sister and I are only a year and four months apart so it’s safe to say we don’t get along all the time. We get in those typical fights that all sisters have, mostly about taking each other’s clothes. However, we are inseparable the majority of the time we are together. When my sister and I were younger, my parents would always say, “you two will be best friends one day,” and I used to roll my eyes. I hate to say this, but they were right.
I see beauty, passion, drive, ambition and so much more in my little sister. She taught me to never give up on someone/something you believe in and showed me that if you work hard enough, you’ll get what you deserve. I’ve seen my sister grow into a strong, independent woman which didn’t come easy to her at first. At a young age, she had a love for athletics which later would become a very important part of her life. When she was only fourteen years old, my sister made the earliest college commitment in area history when she verbally committed to a division one school. I’m ashamed to say but it was hard to accept the fact that my sister knew what school she was going to before I even started touring colleges. However, as I got older, I learned that it was never a competition. I was (and still am) incredibly proud of my sister for her accomplishments and admire the traits she has that I do not. I learned that it’s important to praise people for their achieving their goals instead of bringing them down just because you feel envious. It took me a long time to realize that, but I’m happy my sister is all the things that I am not.
In my opinion, my little sister has taught me more about life than I could ever teach her. She shows me how to be a genuine human being every single day and anyone that knows her also believes this. As the younger sibling, it’s easy to get lost in the shadow of your older brother or sister. In my case, I was living in my younger sister’s shadow. Most people would believe that to be a negative thing, but it helped me grow into the person I am today. When I feel like I’m losing myself, I think of my sister and the person that she makes me want to be. So – Thank you, Makayla, for positively changing my life.