My Sister

My sister Julie called me last night to let me know that she was reading my blog. She said that the blog is seriously lacking in one area...mentions of her. I told her I'd write more about her, so here it goes.

Julie is three years younger than me, but in a lot of ways, she has the wisdom and knowledge of someone who is three years older. She is often able to help me see things, and people, for what they really are and she often calms me down when I get myself wound up into a tizzy of emotion.

Julie is probably the closest thing to the perfect female specimen that God created. She's one of those people that excels at everything she does. She is extremely intelligent (in a "book smart" kind of way...not so much on the common sense front) and has the body of a Victoria's Secret model. Yes, she's one of "those" people.

She also happens to be one of the kindest and most compassionate people I know. She has a very tender heart, a servan't heart, and she keeps an open mind about things without making hasty judgements.

Julie got married last year. I was asked by a few people if I was mad/jealous/upset/surprised that Julie, my younger sister, got married before I did. I guess people were confused that my sister and I didn't follow some pre-ordained life order that mandated that the oldest gets married first. But Julie and I aren't big fans of the conventional. I always felt that Julie would get married before me, and lo and behold, that's the way it worked out. And I couldn't be happier for her and her husband, even thought its weird that she has a different last name now.

Julie's husband, my brother-in-law, is in the National Guard and is stationed in Iraq. He has been there for a few months now and will come home next year. Julie has been such an amazing portrait of strength and loyalty; she has handled the circumstances with wisdom far beyond her years. I am so proud of my brother-in-law, and I'm equally proud of my sister's strength and commitment to him.

But in light of all of these wonderful things about my sister, one of my favorite things about her is that she calls me just to say "hi." I think she has a sixth sense and can somehow feel when I've got the blues, and magically, she knows just when to call just to say "hi," much like she did last night.