Since Jared and I have been married he's really only seen my siblings a couple of days out of the year for the past 7 years (which also means I've only seen my siblings for a couple of days out of the year for the past 7 years!!). The other day I realized he doesn't really know them that well, yet they shaped a lot of who I am.
I've always been the obnoxious little sister. My sister is 6 years older than me and growing up I know I got on her nerves a lot. We used to share a room and I distinctly remember literally holding my breath every time she came into the room because I thought people didn't breath in their sleep and I always pretended to be asleep so she wouldn't get mad at me for one reason or another. I think one of her main complaints was how I always stole her clothes but that really didn't last very long since I outgrew her clothes by the time I was 8. I also remember she got a HUGE Hershey's Kiss from a boy in JR High and I would sneak a couple of bites every day hoping she'd never notice. When she went to open her "brand new" gift to find only a nibble left, well, lets just say I was ready to say good-bye to my dear loved ones. Even though she's half a foot shorter than me I've always looked up to her. I always thought she was so beautiful and super cool and I figured if I tried to be like her maybe someone would give me my very own giant Hershy Kiss. Because of her I would say stuff like "Oh, Robert Redford is sooo good looking" while I was thinking "yuck, he's sooo old." and why "Last of the Mohicans" was my favorite movie too even though I had to cover my eyes through half of it. I was only 12 when she moved out of the house so we really didn't get a lot of time together at home but I still find myself trying to be like her. I think when I realized we are more similar than I ever imagined was when I first got married and my father-in-law said to me "has anyone ever told you you're stubborn as hell??" I just had to smile.
Now John, the perfect child, was not always perfect. I'm pretty sure he has nail marks still scarred onto his arms from several of our many fights we had. He used to tease me all the time and I tried to get him in trouble. This was no easy feat since he tricked everyone into thinking he was such an angel. I've never been much of a crier so I had to put on my best acting skills to try and cry so I could get him in trouble. It never worked. I didn't think we had a lot in common especially when on one of my first days in Jr High my TLC teacher said "oh, you're John Astle's little sister? Man, he was a good kid. What happened to you?" But once we got through the rough years I found myself imitating him too. I even joined the track team because I thought he was so awesome for being such a great runner, after my first (and only) race I learned running well is not genetic. His favorite band was U2 (so obviously they were mine too) and he even took me with him and all of his U2 worshiping friends to their concert and didn't even complain when I sang every single word to every song insanely loud. My mom told me that when we lived in Japan (John was roughly 6) he tried to learn how to jump rope. He sat outside and tried and tried with tears in his eyes until he finally learned how to do it. I've learned through watching him that with a lot of determination and consistency you can accomplish anything you set your mind to.
Both of them have given me advice and helped me countless times without even realizing the impact they had on me. So, I guess I like my siblings and I wish they were closer.
