Sibling Love

Recently I listened to a Ted Talk by Jeff Kluger called “The Hidden Power of Siblings.” In his Ted Talk he talks about a couple of things such as birth order determining various personality traits of children, competition amongst siblings, and parental favoritism in a very interesting and relatable way.  One of the things that struck me the most though  out of his whole talk was the following statement…

“Your parents leave you too soon and your kids and spouse come along late, but your siblings know you when you are in your most inchoate form. Assuming you all reach a ripe old age, they’ll be with you until the very end, and for that reason, there is an intimacy and a familiarity that can’t possibly be available to you in any other relationship throughout your life. Certainly, people can get along without siblings. Single children do, and there are people who have irreparably estranged relationships with their siblings who live full and satisfying lives, but to have siblings and not make the most of that resource is squandering one of the greatest interpersonal resources you’ll ever have.”

This statement warmed my heart and I find it to be so true. Today is my baby brother’s birthday and in honor of his birthday I wanted to take some time to talk about how much this statement resonates with me. You see, my brother is my best friend. Our bond is tremendous and feel incredibly lucky and grateful for our relationship.  It is just us two and we’ve grown up playing together, running ideas off each other, traveling together, picking each other up during the low moments, sharing secrets, figuring out our  next adventure, and supporting each other through our sucessess/failures. Sure we argue and disagree here and there but the bulk of the relationship is one of mutual respect and utmost love.

I am proud of the man that he has become—incredibly smart, handsome, funny, ambitious, loyal, but most of all a kind and compassionate gentleman not only to the me but to everyone he meets.

I wish my brother a very happy birthday and hope that whatever aspirations he has comes true as I can’t think of a more deserving person. As for our relationship, my hope is that it  continues to grow as we enter the different phases of our lives.

And if you are interested….the link below is of the Ted Talk I am referring to.

Until next time….

Bachigner XOXO,

Sandra

Written by sandra