I have two sisters. The younger of the two has beautiful, golden streaked curls, though sometimes she doesn’t think so. Often she asks me to braid them for her, to tame them and make her look more like me. It is always a bittersweet thing to do; to caress them and yet contain them into a simple plait. The older has equally beautiful, long, silky, chocolate brown hair. However, it's not as often that Olivia asks me to do braids for her. Perhaps because our relationship is a little rocky. I am often short with her, and maybe she tries to avoid these moments. Still once in a while she asks, and I oblige.
As I was doing my daily devotional time on Saturday morning I was interrupted by a knock on my bedroom door.
“Come in”
a nervously smiling face appeared as Olivia’s timidly hunched form emerged into the room.
“Can you do my hair?”
Irritated at being interrupted my reply was curt.
“Sure, what do you want?”
“mmm...I don’t know.”
“Okay, well I’ll do it in ten minutes.”
I responded, and her slim form slipped away as the door clicked shut. I let out a long breath. Why did I always have to be so irritated at her timidity? Her unassuming requests were far from offensive, even if they did always come at the wrong time. She is so different from my take charge, positively exuberant, demanding self. And yet, somehow, that always strikes a nerve with me. Why is she afraid to do this, why doesn’t she just hurry up and do that, why does it take her so long to get it done? It drives me crazy, but it shouldn’t. We are sisters. I love her. She irks me.
Finishing up with my prayer time I walked into her room and she came along behind, still in her pajamas, that half excited, half scared look on her face. It still irritated me, but how could I really blame her? In a few hours she would be running in her first cross country meet of the season, her first ever race on team Uni, and she knew I had high expectations for her. I promptly picked the items up off her desk chair and plopped them on her bed, motioning for her to sit down. Then I got to work, pulling together a few strands of her silky, brown hair. As I braided I asked her blunt questions. Was she nervous?
“A little.”
What was her goal time?
“16:30.”
"That’s a good goal." I said, a smile creeping onto my typically serious face, surprised by her uncharacteristic ambition. Pulling one strand after another into the braid we both started to relax, finally falling into comfortable silence instead of strained. Soon she was offering up a little more information, confessing her hope for her friends and teammates. As she talked, and I braided, her shoulders began to straighten and her head to rise in comfort and confidence. Her often humbly hunched form taking courage in my increasingly warming presence.
By the time I had finished, her hair was pulled from two directions into a single plait laying against her slightly straighter spine. I was more relaxed and content with her, and she, surer of herself, adding a new strand of strength to our relationship. I’m glad I chose to love her and help her, giving her the willpower needed for the race ahead but more importantly, breathing fresh air into our relationship.
Constructive criticism on my writing is very welcome!!
Constructive criticism on my writing is very welcome!!
I loved this essay! I think that the intertwining of relationships and braids was absolutely lovely. I like how you take a story but add a greater emphasis to it. I also really liked the clear and extremely effective language. At first, I wasn't sure about getting introduced to your youngest sister before Olivia, since Olivia is focus of your essay. However, the more I thought about it, I think that it works better, since it keeps the topic in a broader perspective and offers a comparison between these two relationships (which I really like). It also keeps an interesting transition. Loved your essay!!
ReplyDeleteA wonderful blog post! Oddly easy for me to relate to... I don't have a little sister, but I do have a little brother who I can't help but love. The short sentences are quite meaningful and don't weigh down or delay the story. You are also very personal and I appreciate that.
ReplyDelete"We are sisters. I love her. She irks me." This sums up so well family relationships (and, I think, just about any relationship that's as close as family). This post is a lovely combination of a simple story and contemplations on how that story reflects sibling dynamics and their evolving nature.
ReplyDeleteA bit of constructive criticism: Pay attention to the way the second sentence gets ambiguous, grammatically, right at the end: "The younger of the two has beautiful, golden streaked curls, though sometimes she doesn’t think so." It makes it sound like she doesn't think she has curls, rather than that she doesn't think they're beautiful (as I assume you intended). You could replace "think so" with "think they're beautiful," or just rework the whole sentence a bit. But in general, your writing here is lovely.