I must of been 15, I think he was 12, but I remember vividly my mom sitting us both down. I don’t remember what we were fighting about, but I do remember how she resolved it: “Someday, when your father and I are both gone, all you will have is each other. So you better figure out how to be friends now.”
Fast forward to this year. I forgot about my mom’s birthday because I was too busy planning for my brother’s. I also forgot about the anniversary of my mom’s death until my brother reminded me and we shared how we were feeling about it.
My mom is gone, but my relationship with my brother means so much more. We are not the same people we were as kids and have different perspectives on life, but only he had the same childhood as me. Only he knows the magic of waking up together on Christmas morning or riding in the back seat during family vacations. We went through difficulties, hardships that forced us to grow up too fast and realities we tried to run away from. On the other side, our family is not the same, but I can’t imagine going through it all without my brother. Your parents love you till the end, but your siblings are there for life.
So we did it, we made it nine years without mom. She would be proud of us. Not just because we are friends, but because we are living life and supporting one another.
Circa 2009
“Our parents leave us too early, our spouse and children come along too late. Our siblings are the only ones who are with us for the entire ride.” – Jeffrey Kluger
(TedTalk on Siblings: https://youtu.be/aFBIPO-P7LM)