Brother Love
Yesterday was my brother Evan's 25th birthday. It's hard to imagine that we're getting that old, but we still have alot of kid in our hearts, so I'm sure the adventures won't end any time soon. So in honor of my brother, here is a top ten list of memories that we've shared over the years. The only hard part of making this list is cutting it down to 10. Anyone who reads this should also use the comment link to post their own top 10.
10. Cleaning gutters--some kids mow lawns, but Evan and I mostly cleaned gutters for our high school spending money. Although we both probably would have rather been doing something else, working together was a bonding experience that has become a good memory.
9. Driving to CO together--when I decided to go back to Montana to be close to Brooke, Evan drove out with me as far as Colorado. Even though it only took us a day and a half, I loved having time with my brother when I wasn't sure how often I would be able to return home....
8. Fishing at thunderbolt marina--Evan and I used to spend a week or more most summers trying to entertain ourselves at Thunderbolt marina outside of Savannah. We would play G.I. Joe, try to gather up as much spanish moss as possible, throwing shells at alligators, and fishing. There are various stories people tell about us fishing, but my favorite memory was one time Evan hooked a fish and it was a monster. He tried to get it in for a long time until the fish swam around one of the pilings and tangled his line beyond hope. We had to cut the line, but these fishing experiences gave me the love for fishing I still have today.
7. Camping in Linville Gorge--The three days we spent in Linville Gorge was one of the first trips I took without adult supervision and it was one of the best, most fun times of my high school years.
6. Going to school together--it may seem kind of unexciting, and really it wasn't that special at the time, but now, I think going to school together made us even better friends.
5. Giving Evan stitches--I tried to count and I think I've been present for or the cause of 50+ stitches in various parts of Evan's body. The first time I think he was less than 3, and my favorite story was when I chased him onto the aerator because he ate one of my cookies. If you see Evan, you should ask him to try to list all the places he's had stitches.
4. Canoeing Yankee Jim Canyon--traumatic experiences always draw people closer. But you have to hear Brooklynne tell this one to understand the true weight of the even.
3. Snowshoeing to the Spanish Creek Cabin--another great Brooke story, but beside being lost and cold, once we got to the cabin, I had one of the best nights with my brother and one of my treasured memories.
2. Playing basketball in the driveway--for a long time I thought it was funny to torture Evan by blocking all of his shots and then shooting left-handed and laughing about it. Then Evan grew about twice as big as me and now I'm the one who relies on the pump fake and fade-away and I'm lucky to be able to compete.
1. Sharing a room together--I always complained and begged for my own room. I even moved into the closet for a while. But really, sharing our room was the best experience. Evan used to talk to me in his sleep at night and sometimes we stayed up laughing. So I think Evan and I are great friends because we grew up sharing and living close together.
I feel slightly obligated to post... :-)
Top 5 List of Memories with Evan
(bc they only span the last 2 years, not the last 25)
5. Visit to the driving range, because neither of us have any interest in golf.
4. Trips to the grocery store, incl. time when he held my purse and acted gay, and we always take more than one cookie (God bless the HT).
3. Young Life camps, Crooked Creek, Frontier Ranch, all places where sparks flew.
2. Skiing, where he constantly had to dig me out of the drifts
1. Time in the car, "it's a buick, baby!" and road trips to come.