she is funny and fierce and fashionable. the perfect blend of feisty and friendly. her tiny frame can barely contain her big heart. a heart that bursts wide open with emotion.
we call her the interrogator. she asks questions faster than anybody i know. her search for answers always uncovers truth. truth that always seems to shed light on any situation. leaving you to wonder why in the world you never even thought of the question. much less the answer.
this girl, the girl who celebrates a birthday today, is the one i always looked up to. a space of six years separates us. but growing up, our rooms were side by side. much like our hearts. i was the pesky little sister who she had to keep. i tattled on her for watching mtv. and she still made me chef boyardee pizza. we drank grape kool-aid with thirst unquenchable. i borrowed her clothes {most of the time without asking}. i tagged along to movies. i just wanted to be around her.
i strived to follow in her footsteps. every step of the way. from working at belk to majoring in early childhood education to dressing alike. she is my role model. I've watched her mother two girls, so as i raise my own daughter i catch myself doing things i've seen her do.
this girl, is graceful and beautiful. her heart of gold seeks the best in people and gives the best of herself. all in the same glance.
she pours into the lives of children. year after year, she fills their brains with lessons that will far outweigh their elementary years.
i know this girl who turns forty today.
she's my sister. my friend.
like all sisters, especially those with years between them, we haven't always met on level ground.
when you're thirteen and your seven year old sister tattles on you, it doesn't make for chuckles and hugs.
but when you're seventeen and twenty-three and your broken-hearted sister shows up to chaperone your senior year spring break, your heart does a flip-flop in your chest. you may or may not have wanted to dance with excitement.
when you are twenty-one and twenty-seven, pleather pants bring giggles for years and years.
when you are thirty and twenty-four, and the first baby is born into both of your lives, you melt. literally melt into a puddle of pink preciousness.
when you are thirty-one and thirty-seven and another pink precious is born, you look to her to help navigate through the new mommyhood angst.
when you are thirty-four and forty, you watch her grow a year older gracefully and realize that age really is just a number. you catch her boldly growing into the woman He created her to be. and you know instantly. this is the reason you always wanted to follow in her footsteps. every step of the way.
i know this girl who turns forty today.
and i can't help but celebrate all she is to me.
my sister. my friend. my truth-finder. my 'i got your back' girl. my drop-it-like-its-hot dance teacher. my fashion guru. my i-just-got-married-kitchen-cabinet-organizer. my in-case-of-emergency.
happy birthday, my sister! i don't know a single forty year old that looks as good as you do. {by the way, i've heard we look alike, so maybe there's a chance i can look as good as you when it's my turn. ya think?!}
i love you with all my heart, juju!
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