I have three sisters. Jessica is a therapist; Kimberly is a high school English teacher; and her twin, Amy, is a lawyer. Amy is one of the strongest people I know. She is the kind of person you know you can count on to have your back when you’re in trouble. Not because she’s a lawyer, but because she’s my sister. She is fiercely protective, loves with her whole heart, and is only afraid of natural disasters, the dark, and being left alone in an empty house overnight. I love her deeply. I have come to realize that since I am so much older than my youngest sisters, I wasn’t always present in their lives. I don’t know who their friends are, cannot keep track of all their adventurous trips and special occasions, and feel a little lost when I think about how much of their lives I have missed. But when it comes down to the truth, we are all connected as if we are tethered to one another, and have been from the start.
Amy is special to me in ways she doesn’t even understand. Being her big sister is one of the best positions I have ever held. She is challenging, so we don’t always see eye to eye, and she usually gets what she wants. She is very competitive. For instance, when she was around six years old she made it her goal to be taller than me. For some reason that bothered me, but not enough to complain. It was kind of funny. When we stood next to each other, she would measure with a hand and see how much higher she needed to grow. Eventually, I became the shortest member of the family.
Amy beat my cross country personal record when she was in high school. There was nothing I could do to uphold my school record after I graduated, so she won that race. As much as I loved running, I always hated racing. And I hated to lose. I was proud of her, though. However; there were recurring instances which I found extremely annoying. I have always liked to keep a tidy house. Just ask my husband. Not a pillow out of place, not a throw blanket unfolded, laundry always clean, dishwasher always unloaded, floors swept more than often, and a scan of each room to make sure everything looks tidy and organized at all times during the day. These organizational inclinations began early in my life. In a house that was our family home and not solely my own, I still at least tried to keep the dishes clean and out of the sink. Amy had oatmeal for breakfast every day. She would leave the remains “soaking” in the sink and knew that after nagging her all day to clean her oatmeal bowl, I would end up cleaning it for her because I couldn’t stand to have it in the sink for another moment. These are incidents we laugh about now.
When I was in the psychiatric hospital in Savannah, GA, Amy came to visit me as often as she could, and she held my parents together. She bottled her emotions so that she could take care of everyone else. She has the largest amount of empathy I have ever seen in my life, and she is skilled in helping people feel better. My hospitalization was kept secret because I wanted it that way, so my family went about their daily lives trying not to think about it and not tell anyone. When I was released, I told my sisters that they could most certainly express their grief and lean on the shoulders of people they trusted in order to tell their sides of the story. Amy found Rob. Rob listened.
Rob became a fixture in our family. Our dog, LOGAN (I spell his name in all caps because he is a small dog with a large personality), is a good judge of character and absolutely loves Rob. Our whole family loves Rob. We look forward to the day when he becomes officially inducted. That exciting day is not so far away!
Amy is destined to make change, and to help many people. She is so special to me, and the world is a better place with her presence here. I am so glad that when my parents wanted a third kid they ended up with two instead. Jessica said, “Which one’s mine?” and we have been sharing them with each other for quite some time. Now, we share them with the world, and it is forever changed.
—SJB
