Some of you have sisters who mean the world to you. I am talking about the sisters who are our siblings. This open letter is to remind you sisters to LOVE your sisters. Having three sibling sisters as my best friends, there is not a day that goes by that I don’t thank God for them. Yes, we argue every now and then, and yes, they try to give me unsolicited advice. But what sister doesn’t do that!
My sister Tammy is the oldest (two years older than me) and she is a character. You can always count on her to be in some mischief or shady dealings. She could sell ice to Eskimos! Growing up she was arrested so many times for shoplifting that they knew her name at the county jailhouse. She got pregnant when she was 16 and married a disabled veteran. He suffered from Agent Orange and would sit on the porch drinking Pepsi and smoking his Pall Mall cigarettes. He died when she was 29 and left her to raise my niece, who carries all of her traits.
Then, there is my sister Gloria who is three years younger than me and lives in San Francisco, California. She was in the US Army and worked as an attorney. Something happened in California, we don’t know what and she won’t say but it was something bad. She was placed in a mental institution and diagnosed as paranoid schizophrenic and was released two years ago. She takes her meds and functions pretty well. She is now an interior designer in California specializing in kitchens and baths and has a large client base.
My sister Karen is 11 months younger than Gloria and lives in Washington, DC. She is a corporate communications director for a large telecommunications company. She has two boys, ages 13 and 17. She was married to a political lobbyist but somehow he strayed away from home one too many times and she left him with the house and everything. Karen professes to never be with a man again for they are all not to be trusted. She now has a partner who is loving and devoted.
My sisters and I are not of the same religious denomination but we remind each other to have the faith of a mustard seed. This faith has carried us through some trying times, like the death of our father from colon cancer and the wandering hand of our uncle who tried to molest Karen when she was eight.
Through the conviction of our brother John to life imprisonment for murder, and the death of our brother Vernon from a brutal beating by police officers in Los Angeles, we have cried together so many times, we can’t count.
But there have been joyous moments, like the birth of all three of my children and the first puppy that Karen got when she was 40! Or the time Karen got a fellowship to a prestigious university and when Tammy finally got her degree. Yes, we have shared it all! But now we have come to a new season. My sister Gloria has been diagnosed with leukemia and has little time left to live.
So if you have a sister, don’t wait too long or till the angels are ready to call you to tell her you love her. Love her now, hug her now, make her smile now, contact her now, support her now, be there for her now and be the sister she so desperately needs now.
Photo Credits
“little sister” © metulsky @ Flickr.com. Creative Commons. Some Rights Reserved
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