She tells me I used to run from her when she’d try to change my clothes. Those years are too early for me to remember. But I do remember her being the first person to tell me that sometimes girls cry for no particular reason. And she was the one who knelt down with me beside my bed and led me to Jesus. Eleven years between us, my oldest sister was like a second mother to me.

Due to our age difference, and the fact that she moved out and married when I was ten, we never knew each other very well. However, we’ve had the opportunity to grow close over the last few years. I’m thankful for her ability to listen without offering commentary or advice; her insight about people and situations; her strength to survive adverse circumstances; her dependence on God to be who He says He is; and her willingness to go above and beyond for her children and grandchildren.

* * * * *

There’s seven years between my older sister and me. My dad tells me every year on my birthday how she clapped when my mother took me home from the hospital. She taught me how to roller skate and how to drive. She told me to wash my face every night, no matter how tired I am. She gave me the coolest haircut in 8th grade {at least I thought so at the time}. She made my wedding veil. As adults, we’ve spent many Christmas holidays together, stuffing ourselves with junk food and watching one Lifetime movie after another.

While we’ve not spent much time together recently, I’m thankful for who she is, who she’s always been. I’m thankful for her compassionate heart; her ability to make strangers feel like friends; her determination to make good memories for her family; her ability to weave words into captivating stories; and her spirit of fun and laughter.

* * * * *

Today, and always, I’m thankful for my sisters.