My Sister, My Friend

If you know me or if you do not know me, one thing that you will walk away knowing after talking to me for a short period of time is that I cherish all of the relationships in my life. Especially my friends and my family.

My family. Oh what a joy they bring me. My dad he is a whole blog for another day. My mother, well you have read about her--she is quite a character. My brother, the "Golden Child" as we younger ones have always called him, is growing to be another one of my favorite people to spend time with.

And then there is my older sister. Natalie. Nattie. Nami. Older Sister. Scooter. Pinky. Nitzi. Red. Now I can truly say, she is the best sister that I could ever ask for. (and yes Nat, I ended a sentence with a preposition, we'll let this one slide).

There is so much about her that I do not tell her enough. I do not tell her how thankful I am for her. For who she is. For what she does. For the kind of sister that she is to me.

But if you know her or spend any time around her...or if you have never met her, here is what you need to know:

She knows more sports stats than any woman or man you will ever meet (she is my sports dictionary when I try to pretend I know anything at all)

She is determined beyond belief. Hands down, gives her all in anything and everything.

She is loyal without fail. She is prompt and she follows through with her commitments.

She loves her family more than she will every know how to show, especially her dad.

She is a genius. Seriously, I somehow wonder if she is really a Merrill.

She does not care about what anyone thinks. Ever. She is who she is, through and through.

She loves her friends. She encourages them by words, quality time and gifts. 

She loves to run. It is her passion. 

She loves her job. She inspires students, brings life to a classroom and reminds them that dreams are real, that can be reached.

She has great red hair. Natural.

She loves Jesus and she dragged her younger sister to a summer camp 10 years ago knowing that the Lord would captivate her heart there, just like He did hers. 

Those are just a few things about my sister. I could write forever about who she is and why she is incredible. But I admire her and for everything that she is. She evens me out. I don't know what my life would be like without her. I don't think I would have survived my last 2 years of high school without her rooting me on and speaking life to me. She has always been on my team. She never quits on me even though I can not say I have been the best to her. She knows how to take care of me and remind that the world does not always revolve around me--because sometimes I have younger child syndrome.

Nat, this time my be a difficult one, and we don't always get it. Maybe we never will. But one day there will be a peace that will come. We can rest in that. And when all we want to do is cry, remember these words:

You're my sister

You're my friend

You're my beginning and my end

You're all when the world just turns and walks away

You're my sunshine on a cloudy day

You're the rain that washes my blues away

And I can always count on you

'Cause you're my sister

And you're my friend

And there is always the infamous Leanne Rimes song that will always hold a special place in our hearts. Get out the flash light kid. Don't ever lose that light in your eyes.

BAM.

-S