“You’re my best buddy, my favorite friend, We’ll always be pals, from now until the end!” – Author Unknown 

“Siblings are the people we practice on, the people who teach us about fairness and cooperation and kindness and caring – quite often the hard way.” – Pamela Dugdale 

You know, it’s funny how my view of life changes on a daily basis. Love, friendship, family, these are 3 specific areas of life that grow in meaning to me all the time, sometimes by the minute. When we are children we learn that love is puppies and candy, friendship is sharing Gushers and Capri Suns at lunch and family is sitting around the table eating dinner and going to Grammie’s on Sundays because that’s what you are supposed to do. As we reach middle school love is the boy across the room with the cool haircut and mysterious eyes whom you write about on your notebooks, friendship is writing notes and inventing nicknames for one another and family is that group of people at home that dictate you life and give you rides. High school is ten times more complicated and the definition for all three, upon reflection, was so far off that I don’t even want to think about it.

I could go on and on into college and into your 20s, so on and so forth, but I think you get the point. I will be turning 30 in a few months and I can tell you that there is one thing that I have learned about all three of these things…they are one in the same. Love is friendship, friendship is love, love is family and family is friendship. It’s that simple. They are synonymous to me. I try to find the differences in them, and, although there are some, they are slight and situational.

Why do I bring this up? Because today is my brother’s 32nd birthday and it blows my mind that we have grown up so fast. I’ve thought about him all day, and about how our relationship has grown and morphed over the years. Through the ups and downs, the tears and laughs, the one thing I kept thinking is that having a brother is what love friendship and family is. When I was younger the last person I probably wanted to talk to about things was my brother, and now I can’t think of any other person I’d rather call first.

He doesn’t judge, he’s not too busy and he just gets me in a way that I don’t think anyone else can. Siblings have been there every step of the way, they have seen you at your worst and your best and at the end of the day, no matter how hard it may have been, they love you, because they are family, they are love and they are forever friends.

Happy Birthday Nate! I love you so much. Thank you for helping me to understand the definitions of love, friendship and family. Thank you for seeing me for who I am, loving that person and for being such a huge part of making me the woman I have become and continue to be. Through our struggles and successes, you have taught me how to be strong, forgiving, accepting, scared, loving, caring, patient and loyal. Thank you!

Attached to this photo is “My Wish” for YOU