Across My Universe: Family Tributes Part 1

There is one special girl out who I have giggled with, played with, yelled at, scraped my knees with, smiled with, sung to the radio with...the list goes on. Once, I harassed her into playing beauty parlor with me when she was 3 and then proceeded to cut off half her hair. She somehow still loves me. She is a star basketball player, an amazing horseback rider, she's smart, artistic, genuine, and beautiful - she is my now-not-so-little sister, and every time I come home from school I am astounded to see how much more she has grown and matured.

She wrote me a letter (a 10 page letter!) before I left for college, and said: "I know your textbooks will be your best friends/enemies, but try to have a little fun without me. You know, textbooks are kind of like sisters - you gotta to love us, you have no choice, though sometimes you just want to throw us in the fire pit." Hee hee. I am happy to say, my darling, that unlike my textbooks, I have never once considered throw you in a fire pit. Whose hair would be left to coercingly curl then??? Oh how I miss our days of tree-fort and sand-castle making: as little nature children we perpetually played in the trees, dirt, creek, sand, tree sap, and every other naturally occurring substance you can think of, with the elements becoming a part of our spirits in addition to each other's presence. In this letter, which I re-discovered only a couple months ago, she wrote, "Thanks for being my sister. I love to laugh, cry, scream and play with you. I'm pretty sure that you are the only person that I have done all five with in every extremity. Haha. Aren't you lucky? Now, last but not least, thank you for being. Because without you, the world would be so much different. My world would be at least. It would be missing your clothes for me to steal, you fun, your love, all that is you."

I just about cried.

So until I manage to write you a sufficient 10 page response, I want you to know, dear sister, that while we were building tree forts, having you in my life built a part of me I would never want to loose. Thank you for your kind heart, your concern for others, and your joyful smile. Thanks for yelling at me when I needed to get off my high horse. Thank you for being, with your clothes for me to steal, your fun, your love, for all that is you and all that I know you will become. I am so proud of you, and I am honored to be your family.

Love love love,
Kathryn