The Virtuous Daughter Magazine Fall 2017 edition Cherish | Página 12

also moved away from home. He went to
Florida to work at a wilderness camp for
troubled boys. In a short amount of time,
our family had overflowed into three dif-
ferent states.
The adjustment was difficult, and it may
have been my first glimpse of just how
precious these people are to me. We tend
to take our family members for granted,
thinking that they will always be there.
Living so far away from them, I began to
appreciate my siblings in a greater way.
Suddenly I looked forward to every mo-
ment I could have with them. Holidays and
vacations together are a treat as they always
were, but even more so now.
Over Christmas last year, we were all to-
gether again. The six of us siblings crowd-
ed into my room and began to talk about
the things we used to do as kids. Draped
over the bed and stretched out on the floor,
someone began to quote the Adventures
in Odyssey episodes we listened to almost
every day and the old animated version of
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Noah’s Ark we watched too many times
and the funny sayings we’ve coined as a
family because of an inside joke we can’t
seem to forget. We laughed because we
knew that those memories sounded the
same to all of our ears.
I believe that God’s design for families is
closeness and friendship through the kind
of relationships that get even better as the
years go by. If you are looking for some
tips, here are a few things that I have dis-
covered.
Be the sparkplug. Sometimes all that our
siblings need is a good idea or plan for an
evening or afternoon. You can be the one
to get a good thing going! Go to an out-
door concert or movie, play spike ball in
the park, find a trail to hike, or visit a tour-
ist attraction in your town that you’ve nev-
er seen. If there are simply too many ideas,
make a bucket list with your siblings and
plan to check an item off of the list every
month, every summer, or whatever is feasi-
ble for your family.
Find common interests.
Hobbies are fun things that
make great memories when
you do them together. May-
be you and your sister love
to read; you could start a
book club. Or maybe your
sister loves the kitchen,
but you’d rather be outside
working in the flowerbeds.
You can enter her world by
working together to make a
meal or try a new recipe.
Ask good questions. We all
love when someone shows
genuine interest in our lives
and tries to discover what
makes us tick. You can be that person
to your siblings by asking them about
their world.
Be the one to make a phone call or send
a letter. When our family members live
far away, it can be hard to stay in touch
and informed about each other’s lives.
Be the one to call and catch up. Make
an effort to remember birthdays or
other special days (national siblings day
is April 10th). Also, a handwritten note
is meaningful to most of us. It means
you took time to sit down and write out
your thoughts for them.
Remember that we relate differently
with our sisters than we do with our
brothers and that no two people are the
same. Learn what each of your siblings
appreciates and keep learning as you
grow together.
This fall, the change continues for our
family with one brother leaving to work
at the same wilderness camp in Florida
and another brother heading to Asia
for most of a year. My little sister, who
grew up when I wasn’t looking, has de-
cided to continue her education at the
local community college. This new sea-
son will bring changes, gains, and loss-
es. It bothers me to be so far away from
the people I love the most, plus I don’t
love change. When I get frustrated at
the miles between us, I find comfort
in this thought and promise: heaven
is made for unending fellowship with
Jesus and these precious people. Some-
times it seems like our time together
is never long enough, but someday the
goodbyes will be over. And I cannot
wait for that day.
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