Sister Act
We all know that blogging is a mixed bag, but it is an undeniably useful vehicle when it comes to communicating with others both known and unknown to us.
But before I tell you why I need your help I want to tell you about my sister.
My sister is, first and foremost, my best friend. And though she doesn't know it, she really always has been, even when I forsook her for a gaggle of girls in leggings and backwards Forenza sweaters. Those girls, invariably, let me down. There was competition, drama, betrayal.
But my sister...she was and is, steadfast and loyal.
She was always waiting when I came home. She was the first to know everything that happened to me and she always acted as if what I was saying was of tantamount importance, even though most of it was silly, histrionic teenaged girl stuff.
When at 17, I came home one night having been formally and rather anticlimactically (literally) deflowered, she responded with just the right amalgamation of awe and disgust. "SHUT. UP." she said. Then she asked for all the details and hung on my every word as I recounted the experience in a very worldly manner.
I really don't have any conscious memories of doing so, but she says that I let her tag along far more than most big sisters would have deigned to allow. I guess it was because I never felt that I had to suffer her presence. She and I genuinely had fun together.
I can remember us small, putting 45's on our little turntable and then spinning and twirling until the pull of earth seemed impossible to resist. We would tumble to the ground, dizzy and laughing, our hair and limbs tangling in a sunstreaked, suntanned sprawl of girl. We would look into each other's eyes and laugh at the way they jumped and lurched while our brains struggled to regain equilibrium. Then we would leap to our feet and do it again.
My sister is funny. My sense of humor is dry and sarcastic, but she has a knack for the ridiculous. She is completely unabashed in her antics, even as an adult. She has retained the silliness that most of us lose when we grow up.
When we were growing up, my parents struggled to make ends meet. They both worked long hours at demanding jobs. Even as children we understood their weariness. Oh, they were strong, my parents, and we knew that too. But there were times we sensed that, for whatever reason, they were almost beaten. On those occasions, my sister would employ every weapon in her arsenal to make them laugh.
Once, my mother came home from work and collapsed on the sofa, which was terribly unlike her. My mother, in those days, was a force of nature; always in motion. We exchanged a worried glance, and in my sister's blue green gaze, I could see her puzzling over how to circumvent the crisis at hand.
My mother, trying to make light of her weariness said, "Girls, could somebody please go upstairs and change my clothes for me?"
And that was all she needed.
She disappeared and I knew she was up to something. But it was anybody's guess what the something would be.
I heard her giggling before she even got down the stairs. When she entered the living room, she could scarcely contain her mirth as she wobbled through the living room on my mother's high heels.
She was wearing my mother's favorite sweater, it was brown and white striped, with a knit belt and a shawl collar. She also had on a pair of my mother's polyester perma crease pants, elastic waisted for comfort. They were a stunning shade of aqua. And to complete the ensemble, my mother's best taupe pumps.
She swam in everything of course, and could scarcely keep the pants from falling to her ankles. Each mad grab brought a fresh gale of giggles from her, and she swayed so precariously on the high heels that I expected her to topple over any moment. She was a comical sight, no doubt, but the thing that was really funny, was the fact that she had so effectively cracked herself up.
My mother began to laugh. It was magical when my mother laughed and it made you feel like everything was okay. She laughed until she cried. The harder my mother laughed, the harder we laughed. We laughed until our sides ached and we all had tears streaming down our cheeks. My sister laughed herself right off of those high heels and crumpled to the floor in a heap.
There are so many memories like that..it would take forever and a day to tell them all.
Is that to say we have never argued? Certainly not. Sometimes we fought like cats and dogs. Sisters do. But unlike a girlfriend, a sister is forever. Even in the midst of the most heated argument, I knew she would never turn her back on me. I knew she would always champion me. I knew she would always be there for me.
A while back, she and her husband moved here so her husband could find work. They were living in Wyoming, where the options are extremely limited.
I was ecstatic. For the first time in 10 years, I was not alone. My children had an Aunt and Uncle, and later cousins to have a relationship with. My sister and I went shopping, had girls days, hung out. We talked about stuff that most people don't talk about in causal social situations. It was meaningful conversation, the kind both of us were starved for.
And then, four years ago, she decided to move back home. She had a 3 year old and newborn twins and she needed more help and more support than I could give her, having boys of my own with a busy schedule. She needed our Mom. I understood and I was happy for her. Going home was a dream we had both harbored for a long time. But I was absolutely bereft at her leaving.
I miss her every. single. day.
A few years later I started a blog, and now my sister is privvy to all the happenings here, despite being 900 miles away. She reads about stuff I might not think to tell her, or that I might forget when finally we both have a moment to talk on the phone for more than a few moments. I express a lot of my deepest thoughts, fears, hopes and dreams here, and she reads them all.
Sometimes, I start to tell her a thing, and she says "Oh, I know! I read about it on your blog." Often, her emails to me begin with, "So, I was reading your blog...."
But I don't have the same window into their world. I get bits and pieces from my Mom and I get abbreviated commentary from her in emails and those all too brief phone calls. But mostly, their day to day life is a mystery to me.
It's not fair.
So I've been trying to encourage her to start a blog. She dismissed the suggestion, saying that she has nothing of value to say, nothing that would interest anybody at all.
Here's where you come in bloggers.
Please help me convince my funny, intelligent, and imaginative sister, that blogging would be a good thing and that she does indeed have things to say that people will want to hear.
She has boy girl twins who are so cute you could eat them up, but who will also beat the tar out of each other on occasion. Sometimes when I am speaking to her on the phone, chaose erupts and it sounds as if WWIII is upon us.
The girl twin is actually my daughter, my sister having somehow spawned a child that is very much like me in all her girly glory.
The boy twin is a LOT like Diminutive One and I laugh sometimes when she, with shock, describes a thing that he has done. It is all so very familiar, but much funnier when someone else's child is the perpetrator.
Her 7 year old, like my boys, is exceptionally smart and very very funny, but he doesn't know he's funny. He says things with great seriousness, and his earnestness alone is terribly amusing, although, one takes great care not to laugh.
Not to mention that she has to deal with all the family crap that arises when one lives two blocks from one's parents and when one's father is a retiree with too much time on his hands and one's youngest sister is a quirky individual with an interesting domestic situation.
I, though admittedly biased, think a blog by my sister would be a wonderful addition to this little corner of cyberspace. And of course, there are those of you out there whose wit and sagacity make you masters of persuasion.
Together, I think we might just be able to suck her in.
Can you help a sister out?
28 Comments:
At 3:49 PM, Carol said…
OMG! This is ME! My entire family knows everything I and my family do, but I know so little about their daily lives! No fair!
Sister, PLEASE start a blog!! Because you know -- blogs are anything BUT stupid!!
Carol
At 4:00 PM, S said…
Oh, Sister of BA:
You'll love blogging. You will. And if BA says you're cool, well then, you're cool.
At 4:14 PM, Christine said…
I've been trying to convince my mom and one of my good friends to blog, too. So, Sister of Ba, I'll tell you what I've been telling them...
You won't believe the beauty and the depth of the blogging community until you jump in. You'll make true friends, learn about yourself and others, and feel connected to the world in a way you didn't know was possible.
My only regret about blogging is that I didn't start sooner.
At 5:02 PM, Amy Y said…
Dear BA Sister ~ please start a blog... If you are half as cool as BA, I'm sure you will have a ton of readers ~ the most important of them being your very own sister. And she's right, it's just not fair! :)
At 5:28 PM, Anonymous said…
Dear BA sister
Your words will spread yeah unto the furthest corners of the earth, giving comfort and laughs to the downtrodden!
Kay (New Zealand...feeling very downtrodden this week!)
At 5:31 PM, Girlplustwo said…
Dear Sister of BA,
The blogging world needs you. Your sister, while extraordinary, cannot fully function without you having a blog. Therefore none of us can fully function.
You owe it to all of us.
Love,
Jen
At 6:01 PM, Anonymous said…
The great thing about a blog...is your are the boss...you can be in insane over achiever and blog everyday with a big long fascinating blog (like your sister) or you can do one or two lines once a week....or once amonth. I would be intimidated if I thought I had to keep up with your amazing sister...but hey, you don't have to. So blog on girl...blog on...
Arlene
At 6:11 PM, Anonymous said…
If BA can inspire me, a complete stranger, to start my own blog, then I can't wait to meet the sister of BA. Get that blog going, Sister!
At 6:59 PM, flutter said…
Dear Stupid Sister (plant tongue firmly in cheek)
If you do not start a blog, your sister will be forced to make one up, using your name as a nom de plume and will post exploits the likes of which you have never known....mainly because you never did any of them.
In other words, get on the ball,sista!
love,
flutter
ps, all new sister blogs come with red velvet cake baked by yours truly
At 7:50 PM, Lady M said…
Dear BA Sister,
Those "everyday" stories that don't seem earthshattering are the very tales that keep family close, even when you're miles apart. The first thing that my parents do when they get up in the morning is to read my and my husband's blogs, to see what their little grandson is doing.
BA - I've been lurking for a few months. Thank you for sharing your amazing stories and amazing writing skills. Best wishes with finding your library (or other) job. I'm sure you'll find something that suits you well.
At 8:09 PM, SUEB0B said…
Aw, do it for your sis. Please?
Shall I pull out the tear-jerker stops? This is true - my sis recently passed away, and one of my big solaces is being able to go look at her old blog posts. I feel like she is still with me.
At 9:16 PM, painted maypole said…
she wouldn't have to worry about building an audience, that's for sure. we would all come and visit!
At 1:22 AM, Unknown said…
Sister, you must start to blog. As a mother of boy/girl twins who has been online since before they were inutero, it has been an INVALUABLE way to chronicle the day to day stuff my twins did when they were little. They're 15 now, and they still do stuff that blows my mind. I'd never remember it all if it weren't online. Plus, my kids LOVE to read about themselves, especially when they were little and so freaking funny.
So please, give us all something else to love about your sister... a new blog to read and adore. Pretty please?
At 6:55 AM, Anonymous said…
C'mon sister!
We need more fantastic blogs to read!
I would certainly look in. I have boy/girl twinnies of my own.
At 12:23 PM, Anonymous said…
Just because you don't think you have anything to say is no reason to disregard starting a blog. A blog is a great way to let the family know what's going on with the kids and the spouse. It's a great way to share photos and videos.
It's also a way to let off steam when you feel the world is weighing down upon you and you don't know where to go.
So... start a blog and have some fun with it!
At 12:51 PM, Mary Alice said…
Well, I never wanted to have a blog at all. My friend started my blog for me. Set it up, created a password the whole bit and called me with the info. Then I felt obligated. The very same thing happened to my sister. HER friend set up her blog and told her to go forth and post. So, here my sister and I are now, posting away out of some sort of polite obligation and inability to disappoint.
At 2:56 PM, Chicky Chicky Baby said…
Dear BA's sister,
My sister and I have a very similar relationship in that we are the best of friends and always have been. I've been trying to convince my sister to start a blog but she refuses so I will make it my life's mission to convince you instead. I can be a tremendous pain in the butt (as my dear sister tells me often) so you should just give in now and share us all the headaches.
Sincerely,
A woman who can't mind her own damn business.
At 6:52 PM, Anonymous said…
I think blogging is a great way to share stories and pictures with family in friends, gives you something creative and personal do to or think about each day.
It's an excellent idea.
At 9:07 PM, Lisa said…
Same situation here ... my friends say they feel like they are able to keep up with my day-to-day stuff but I never get to hear what's going on with them. If your sister is half the wonderful blogger you are, she'd be an awesome addition to the blogging world.
Come on, sistah! Give it a shot!
Lisa at Snarkypants.com
At 10:23 PM, Ladybird said…
Well, they say that a picture speaks a thousand words. The majority of my post are everyday pictures with a little comment about what is happening in each one. If she feels like she is not a good writer, pictures are always and easy way to blog.
C'mon Sis! You can do it!!!
At 11:24 PM, josetteplank.com said…
Well, you could do what I did...
and black mail your sister.
My sister already had a blog,
but she kept telling me she was too busy to write what with work and her kids and her twelve goats and two horses and chickens and three dogs and ten cats.
Pfft. As if. The goats practically take care of themselves.
Anyway, my solution to get my sister to write more was to threaten to tell the embarrassing Perrier story to the entire world. And that worked.
Except, she posted pictures of me dressed as Gene Simmons. And that was very painful.
And now I've been forced to post pictures of her with underwear on her head.
So, you know, think twice about this sisterly blogging thing.
Although, in spite of the smackdown stuff, it's worked out pretty well. ;-)
At 3:04 AM, merinz said…
Please BA's sister - start your own blog.
I too didnt think that anyone would ever want to read my blog but now I find that I have readers all over the world. I have added a map which pinpoints the 'hits' and it is so interesting to see where the new readers are located.
At 9:58 AM, Gidge Uriza said…
It's weird because despite the fact that I am truly an unrepentant mommy-blogger, I gotta say that I consider my blog one of my selfish ME things. It's why I love it. It lets me creative or stupid and it has let me connect with people all over the world - including lots of TWIN parents who have interesting/funny tales to tell.
You gotta blog, because if you are half as interesting we've been told.......we will ALL read you!
At 5:16 PM, Anonymous said…
Does anyone even READ the 24th comment? Geez, I hope so!
Dear sister of B.A., whom shall now be known officially in this comment as SBA.
Start a blog - because your sister, our dear B.A., will probably just write more posts about how wonderful you are if you don't, and we'd really like to find it out for ourselves (we're selfish like that). You don't have to compare or contrast your blog to anyone else's (B.A. and I agree on that all the time) and just think of all the fun you and B.A. will have coming up with your blog-name and the blog-names of your children and family! She'll link to you and as SBA, you will undoubtedly go to the head of the class. Reason enough to blog, if you ask me (which I realize you did not).
Hope to see you soon!
At 7:09 PM, Blog Antagonist said…
I read the 24th comment, Kvetch, dear. I read all the comments. I'm kind of pathetic that way. :?)
At 7:17 PM, Shelley said…
Ok sis, definitely time to start a blog. Hell, I have nothing worth saying either, but that certainly doesn't stop me. And I don't have a sister to share things with either! A brother yes...but like he'd ever write anything. I can't even get him to email me a picture of his two-year old. Take advantage of sisterhood and start blogging! It's rather addictive, I think.
At 9:05 PM, crazymumma said…
The two of you togetehr out here in the blogging community would be a force to be reckoned with.
Start one sister, even if it is just for Antagonist....
At 7:07 AM, Anonymous said…
Interesting to know.
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