Friday, July 19, 2013

For My Sister


Today, I want to post some thoughts about my sister.  I have been thinking about her a lot lately and just wanted to share my meanderings since it's Friday and I love a good story on a Friday...and I love my sister :)

We are identical twins.  We were born in Grace Hospital in Vancouver, B.C., and we were 7 minutes apart.  I always imagine that on that day, we had already "talked" about how everything would unfold.  Me probably planning everything to the most minute detail, her just saying we would roll with the punches.  And with a little imagination and a few details from our parents, this is how it did unfold...

It ended up that I came out first...I like to think it's because I treasure my sister as my most prized jewel and I wanted to check everything out and make sure if was safe for her to come out.  I was, and always have been, her protector (even though she doesn't need it anymore).  So after some pushing and shoving I finally made my way, somewhat suspiciously, into the world.  Was it going to be safe?  Was it gong to be scary? It was cold!!!  But immediately I knew it was safe.  I saw a really nice man who smiled at me and kissed my cheek and then this really gorgeous lady held me and hugged me!  Wow!  Life was going to be great :)  I telepathically sent my sister a message telling her it was a go ;).

7 minutes later, she came out too!  She was not as happy as I had been and I wondered what was wrong.  So far, it was so wonderful out here...what had happened?  She was very red and the nurse immediately took her up to the NICU for tests.  The nice man that had kissed my cheek went with her and I stayed with the gorgeous lady.  I couldn't stop looking at her.  Her eyes told me that she would always take care of me, and her smile told me that we had already known each other for a very long time.

Meanwhile, up in the NICU, my sister had been put in to an incubator.  Her skin was very red and she was screaming bloody murder.  They ran a battery of tests and came up with nothing.  The nurse walked over to the nice man and said, "Excuse me sir, but there is nothing wrong with this little girl.  Quite simply, she is just very, very angry!"  The nice man was confused, but very relieved and even thought it was a little funny!  So back downstairs they came to be with me and the gorgeous lady.  And we started our life together.

I believe she was angry because I hadn't "rolled with the punches".  Perhaps she was supposed to come out first and I was just so much bigger than her that I strong armed my way out!  My planning and obsessing had made her very frustrated and perhaps she didn't want me to go out to check if everything was safe.  Maybe she had wanted to go first to ensure my safety...I guess we'll never know :).

What I do know, is that since birth my sister has been head strong and determined to follow her heart.  Nothing has stood in her way since that first day when we were born.  The fire within her burns brightly for everything she chooses to do, and her love for her friends and family and even strangers is what makes her such a special and magical human being.  I am honored and humbled to call her my sister, my identical twin sister, and she is my blessing in life.  There are things I am sure I could not have overcome without her.  I am positive that I would be in a very different place in my life without her constant support, guidance and strength.  So I suppose that although I have always thought of myself as her protector, my discovery lately is that she is the one who kept me afloat because it was her to kept me moving forward.  Whether it was her need for my support that made me put my own issues aside, or my need for her care that allowed me to continue I know we were given a life to live together to learn to love, and that is the greatest gift of all.

Happy Friday everyone!






1 comment:

  1. What a precious gift to share with us. Much love to you both! XOX

    ReplyDelete