Sister Love

Today is Thursday . . a day of sharing with my sisters . . .a day where we chat on the phone. . .a day that we set aside . . .a day of love. A couple of years ago, the crises of family life seemed to be falling down around our shoulders as my sisters and I were pushed and pulled into one roiling trauma after another. Our old maiden aunt was dying . . and then did pass away. Our father's behavior was erratic, childlike in one moment to angry in another, as Alzheimer's diminished his aging graces and we scurried in nerve-ending frenzy to make certain he did not fall or fail in the company of others. My niece was pregnant with an abnormal chromosomal marker screening (turned out to be twins), my nephew was heading off to college (which he did and then returned) and I was screeching insane with the reality of my husband's affair just revealed (the scars of which I have tucked away, but still linger). And in the midst of all of that . . .my sisters and I fell into the arms of each other and learned how to become resilient. Through those terrible days and weeks which turned into months of prolonged heartache when my father fell on the ice, broke his leg, had a massive heart attack and left us all to grieve his death . . .my sisters and I rediscovered each other and became stronger than we ever were before. We found comfort in the ordinary . . in our commoness of struggle . . .in our search for meaning and explanations . . we spoke with and to each other. In whispered tones and in shouted emotion . .amidst hot tears and cold shoulders and bellyrolls of socially inappropriate laughter . . we survived in the warmth of each other's arms and voices. It is a bond that is so deep and so strong . . . and so beautiful. It's Thursday. Have you talked to your sister today? Have you told her lately just how much you love her?