National Sibling Day (April 11)

So I learned that today is National Sibling Day - another made-up holiday, but I like this one because … well, my brother is my best friend in the whole world. He’s 14 months younger than I am. He is my earliest memory - I remember my mom showing him to me when he came home from the hospital. And we’re … not unalike, but not alike either.

My brother is very charismatic - if you met him, you’d get sucked into his vortex too.

The best way to explain my brother Jeremy is to show him in his usual guise in a photo. He’s usually doing something on a mountain. Snowboarding, hiking, biking, whatever… When I get emails from him, the signature line is “I fear flat planets.” He frowns upon heat. He showed me my first glacier. This photo is of Jeremy when he lived in New Zealand. He’s lived there, Tejas, Colorado, Vermont, Montana, Alaska and Washington. He’s always sending me pics of him on top of mountains.

I am remarkably proud of my little bro (who is almost a foot taller than I) for his dedication to living life without fear, and for his absolute loyalty to those he loves. He does whatever the hell he wants. He lives wherever he wants. He believes his own reasoning is good enough for anyone. He regularly hurtles himself down steep slopes but thinks the fear is fun, or at least interesting. He’s taught me a lot about how not to be afraid in life, about how to go for it and ask questions later. About how asking permission is a lot harder than getting forgiveness afterward. (Right, bro?) He’s taught me about what it means to believe in others and myself.

Jeremy is not organized (at all), and he’s forgetful. He does not own furniture nor is domestic in any way - really, he does not “own” anything or want to. He does not want to settle. He travels and learns and argues with people, and spends a hell of a lot of time working out (don’t get into a fight with him, he works out daily and has an … er, volatile temper).

Jeremy’s someone I look to when I find myself playing it safe instead of doing what I believe is right. He is proud of me for being a person I like, not for toeing the line. He thinks rocking the boat is probably better than accepting the status quo. Jeremy’s fearlessness is what I remember when I’m afraid to be me, or to state my true opinion. He reminds me that no matter what, I shouldn’t accept being passed over or ignored.

And if I don’t like where I am, I can always go forth and find a new and more interesting experience.