The Little Sibling that Could

My son was 7 yrs old by the time I had my daughter. One of my biggest concerns at the time was whether or not he would resent having a new baby sibling around. However, my concerns were quickly put to rest the day I brought her home. The minute he laid eyes on his tiny little sister, he became a very loving big brother. He was always willing to help with feedings, diaper changes and entertaining. He was an expert at making her laugh. He enjoyed holding her too. His actions showed me that he really loved his little sister.

Let’s fast-forward about two to three years later. That tiny and precious baby girl had now transformed into a playful, sassy toddler. Every chance she got to be in her brother’s face or space, she would take it. This really bothered my son. Most days she would annoy him so much that he had to do the one thing he wasn’t very good at; talk! I would hear him saying phrases like, “get on my nerves,” to “get her out,” or “make her stop.” At a time when my son barely spoke, hearing those phrases were like music to my ears. She MADE him talk! Really, she left him with no other options. She changed our lives forever.

The Power of His Voice

I had a handful of cousins growing up. Our ages ranged like stair steps, and we loved each other like brothers and sisters. One day John, a teenage cousin of ours, made an awful decision. He decided to ride along with a group of his peers in a stolen car! Needless to say, they were pulled over by the police a few short joyrides later.

At the time, my oldest brother was a deputy sheriff. This worked out in Cousin John’s favor. Along with the fact that he had no prior criminal record, he was released into the custody of my brother. My house was the closest to the scene therefore, that’s where most of us cousins gathered to have words with John. Needless to say, tempers escalated quickly. John was trying to explain his side of the story, yet none of us wanted to hear his excuses. It was borderline chaotic in the living room that evening, with what seemed to be no end in sight. Luckily, something did happen to bring an end to the uproar. Something no one, including me, ever expected to happen! My son, who may have been 6 or 7 yrs old at the time, came out of his room and into the living room. He walked to the middle of the floor and shouted, “Wait, wait maybe Cousin John has something to say!” His words brought our state of disorder to a screeching halt. For about ten seconds you could hear a pin drop. Then something amazing happened. We All Laughed! We laughed so hard we all were in tears.

All it took was the voice of the youngest individual present, who rarely spoke, to put an end to our dysfunction. To this day, if one of us says that phrase to the other, there’s instant laughter. I’ll always remember that day as the day HIS voice and HIS words were the calm to our storm.  PS Cousin John has never been in any trouble since!!