National Siblings Day

SO TODAY IS  NATIONAL SIBLINGS DAY AND AS I SAT HERE AND THOUGHT ABOUT THE DAY, I HAD SO MANY THINGS COME TO MIND.   

 Of course, as a mom, my first thoughts were my own children and their siblings.    My next thought was my own brother and sisters.

I will start with my own brother and sisters.   Growing up, I was the middle child.   I have 5 older siblings , my older brother Billy and Ricky, my older sisters Adele,  Kathy and  Dorothy .   I also have 2 younger sisters , Nancy and Gayle.  Nancy and  I have always had a close relationship, and to this day we  still do.   I have a ton of memories as kids growing up, yet as I sit here and think about Siblings Day, it is our relationship that we have now that we have grown.   My brother Billy and I were very close, and I miss him constantly.  He passed away several years ago, and I still find myself when things get crazy in my life, wanting to pick up the phone and call my big brother.   He and I were what we always referred to as the black sheep in the family. My older sisters Kathy and Dorothy and brother Ricky,  I didn’t grow up with , yet in my mind and heart, they are as much my siblings as the ones I lived with growing up.   Sadly, my brother Ricky, I never had a chance to meet before he passed away.   My older sister Kathy, and I had a chance to develop a relationship before she passed away , and I will forever be grateful for those years.   My older sister Dorothy, is still alive, and although we seldom talk, we have the type of relationship that when we do talk, it is as if we haven’t missed a beat.   I love that her and I also have had a chance in our lives to become close at one time, and that no amount of years or distance will ever change that closeness we have.  I have always thought that her and I are very much alike, and it is kind of funny, since we didn’t really know each other until I was almost grown.  Then I have a younger sister, Gayle, that I finally got to know when she was about 17 and although we don’t talk often, I love her dearly.

I pray that we can soon change that and get to know each other better and be in each other’s lives. Seventeen years ago, I moved across the country from my siblings, so our relationship has existed via telephone and technology. Thank goodness for Facebook ,as we are able to see each other’s children and lives unfold. As I have gotten older, I have found that I really miss having that daily contact with my sisters and although I know that my move to Tennessee was the best thing for my family, it is still hard to not be around them and get to spend time with them on a regular basis. My little sister has made the trip out here to visit a couple of times and I have gone back to California a couple of times. Sadly my finances haven’t allowed me to make very many trips there though. Yet, I can honestly say, even though I do miss those times spent together, I love both my sisters with all my heart!! I pray that someday we will be able to have the chance to spend more than just a couple of days with each other every few years.

The next thing that I reflect on today is my own children and their relationship as siblings. My oldest daughter is 12 years older than her sister and 14 years older than her brother. While they were growing up, of course the oldest did a lot of the raising of her younger siblings, because dad and I were working. I always worried what kind of relationship they would have as they got older. I am happy to say that now they all seem to have a fairly good relationship, each in their own way. Of course it wasn’t always that way, but I don’t know of any siblings that can say they had a wonderful relationship all through their growing up years. My oldest daughter, Crystal is now 32 , my middle daughter, Tiffany is soon to be 21 and my youngest son, Michael has just turned 18. My prayer as their mom is that they continue to grow close as they get older and each one matures into their own. We all live very close to each other and I am thankful that they are able to see each other on a daily basis. As a mom, it is so important to me that they have a close relationship and are there for each other as they go through life.

So that is my story in a nutshell in honor of NATIONAL SIBLINGS DAY.  I wonder what yours is? Do you see your siblings on a regular basis? Do you have a good relationship with them? I know that some of my followers on this blog will be like myself and have lost a sibling (or more) , and my prayer for you today is that you are able to reflect back on those days you had together and remember them, as I will be doing myself today.

I would love to hear from you in the comments below something about your siblings and what today, National Sibling Day means to you.