Big sisters are the crab grass in the lawn of life. ~Charles M. Schulz
by Drew Starks
Ah Sisters! This post is about sisters. Mine in particular. Growing up I had two……. Now that I am old I still have 2. Some of my earliest interactions that I can recall were those with my sisters. Lots of them involved yelling, screaming, scratching, and tattle tailing like in most normal households, but on many occasions there was peace in the house. Those were the times I got to participate. I was not always the most understanding of my older sisters. When they would let me play with them I would lean towards destruction, dirt, and hardy boy things. They did not like this in particular when they would allow me to play with “Ken.” How was I to know that Ken’s legs do have a breaking point? That’s ok though as his hands were not really molded to be able to hold a semiautomatic rifle; Lame! Later on in life though I learned that Ken was made to be a little softer and support the role of Barbie in her world. That’s when Ken and I parted ways and hello GI Joe! On other occasions I got to dress up with the girls. They loved the old days of little house on the prairie so that was the theme of most dress-ups. Without TV at the time I did not know there were male caricatures on the show so guess what? I was one of the girls…..yes there are pictures to prove it and my wife loves to show my friends.
My Sisters as I See them!
I do have a direction here and this rambling on serves a point. In later years my sisters have grown up, got married, have 2 kids each, and are successful in pretty much all they do. I am astounded with their accomplishments, giftings and endurance in all they do. They are tough woman. I am assuming they have learned a lot through life’s ups and downs, but I believe their stamina is a gift that Mom gave them. A gift to get the job done no matter what or how much is going on and to do so in love as much as possible. I believe we (us boys in our family) owe the sisters much more then we have shown or really know we should show them. You see, when Mom got sick the girls really stepped it up. We all had to step it up, but Jeff and I lived out of state and were not available for the dirty work. For 7 years now the sisters have taken on way more then their households. Way more then there patients can, could, or should tolerate, way more then what was asked of them. Mom had a grueling 7 year battle with cancer. She fought and fought not only for quantity of life, but quality of life. The Sisters made that possible with their support. Meals, updates, cleaning, driving around, prayers, encouragement, caretaking, loving, haircuts, playing the piano, reading the word, gifts, tea parties, trips to craft stores, grocery stores, drug stores, doctors offices, rubbing arms, legs, heads, hands, taking care of Leighton, Dad, dog, cat, house, etc. The Sisters were there for Mom and Dad and that was only the physical parts. They were so much more involved mentally, spiritually and emotionally all the while being there for their own families.
My Sisters the hero’s. 
I do not mean this in any way short of what it means. And if they read this I am sure they are playing it down or chalking it up to love. As true as that is it still stands that my sisters, the tough gals they are, are in fact my hero. This week they have been going over to Dad’s to pack up the rest of Moms belongings. A very emotional and draining task. As I write this I am flooding with tears. I cannot go down there to do it solely based on I am not strong enough. This is one of those things that I hate about life. How do you move on without forgetting or feeling like you are moving Mom out? How do you set up a house that was once filled with a Mom and Dad that were stable, supportive and a comfortable place with familiarity all around? With both equal parts being represented and Christmas and family gatherings were complete with laughter, tears, at times frustration, and times great joy. How do you pack that up so that we on earth can move on? How do you even move on with a broken heart and fear of losing one’s mothers memories? Somehow, my Sisters have found the strength to do so.
So to this I say I love my Sisters very much and am very grateful to them for all their hard work with our family. These accolades, as pathetic as they are, are not the reason they did all this, but it is in fact the reason to celebrate them more. I am so grateful for you both and love you both more than words can say. You truly have been used by God to further Mom’s life and made it rich to the end. Without your endless love for her and the rest of the family we would without a doubt be worse off. I hope you both know how much your worth to me, Lissa, our family, your families, Lake County and the body of Christ.
Thank you!
