Dearest “Baby” Brothers,
I’ll start by saying how incredibly proud I am of both of you. You are both such amazing, kind-hearted {young} men. You both have taught me so much since you came into my world; one of you when I was just 18 months old, and the other when I was 15 years old. From such a young age, you taught me how to be patient, how to care for someone other than myself, and to always be a good role model. Having you both for brothers has been one of the greatest blessings of my life.
At just 18 months old, a 6lb 14oz bundle of joy wrapped in a blue blanket was introduced to me. Little did I know that that baby boy would become my very first best friend. Despite the occasional fist fighting over Super Nintendo and even though you spray painted my Barbie jeep blue, I don’t remember a time in my life where you weren’t by my side. I remember being excited to see you in the hallway at school, always wanting to know how your day was going, the fierce need to protect you always at the forefront of my mind.
As we got older, you became a permanent part of my friendship circle. Sometimes I even think that my friends liked hanging out with you more than me. Most sisters would’ve hated that, but honestly, I loved it. I enjoyed having you around, hanging out with all of us; I could keep an eye on you without it being blatantly obvious. And even when we would hang out with our friends without each other, I was always inquiring how things were going. I had to make sure my “baby” brother was being treated properly by his friends, and especially by girls. It wasn’t above me to threaten bodily harm to anyone who hurt you. To this day, even though you hate it, I will eye a girl up and down and ask a million questions in order to determine if she’s good enough for you. Sorry, not sorry. I am so glad that we were able to share so many great memories during the younger years of our lives. There is no one else I would have rather had by my side.
Fast forward to me being 15 years old. I was once again meeting a new baby brother; all 8lbs, 2oz of you! I’ll be the first to admit that when Mom told me she was pregnant, I was not happy. I was a teenager, in high school, I had an image to uphold. I was so embarrassed that my “old” Mom was having a baby. That feeling didn’t last long; I got to pick your middle name which made me feel important and involved. Not to mention, the minute you were born my entire life changed. I was a big sister for the second time, much older with experience under my belt. You quickly became “my baby.” I took you everywhere with me. So much so that people would frequently ask me if you were my son! Now don’t get me wrong, I loved you so much, but I was quick to turn down the insinuations of being your Mom. Sorry bud, but I wasn’t ready for that; I was still a kid myself.
As you have gotten older, you have become my other best friend. The need to protect you like I protected our other brother is fierce. I have to remind myself that I’m an adult, I can’t yell at teenagers. Seeing you go from this little baby to a smart, handsome young man is enough to bring tears to my eyes. Mom frequently reminds me that you are my mini, with your stubborn streak and hatred of waking up early. Own it, little brother; it’s a good thing, I promise.
Both of you recently had birthdays, one of you turning 28, the other turning 14. I look back on the past 29 years of my life and there isn’t a single day that one or both of you weren’t there by my side. I am so grateful that God chose me to be your big sister. I promise to always protect you, give you advice and offer support, and even put you in your place when it’s needed {hey, it’s not always sunshine & rainbows}. But most of all, I promise to love both of you with all that I have and to continue to thank God for blessing me with the two greatest little brothers I could’ve ever asked for. Thank you for coming into and changing my life. I truly don’t know where I would be without you. Thank you for being my best friends and my protectors. Thank you for loving me and letting me love you, little brothers.
Love, Your Big Sister {PS: We definitely need an updated picture of the three of us!}
Do YOU have a sibling or sibling that you’d like to honor? Give them a shout in the comments below!
