"Big Brothers"

As the oldest child, I don't know what it's like to have an older sibling. But I can certainly imagine. Today I'm going to wrote about some "big brothers" in my life, and hopefully later I'll get a chance to do my "big sisters". (Names are intentionally omitted - if you know them, you'll recognize them).

Today, I had the pleasure of having lunch with one of my on-campus "big brothers" after church.
It was really great, because it was just the two of us, and I hadn't had a chance to talk to him in several weeks. Also, he's one of the wise introverts I mentioned in my previous post, so we had some great DMC (Deep, Meaningful Conversation). He was the 'Woolie' on my floor my freshman year, which means he led us to orientation events and just generally introduced us to campus. He was/is one of the most devoted people I have ever met, and really focuses on strong relationships with people - which is one of the reasons I was so happy to get to talk to him today. Every single one of my floor mates (who are now sophomores) remember and miss his guitar playing, mafia organizing, and general social attitude. He just made all of us feel like someone really cared about us.

Another one of my on campus "big brothers" has since graduated - but the RA on my floor last year was my CS big brother. In addition to RAing my floor, he TA'd for the class I was in my first semester and helped all of us when we needed it. It's because of him that I want to become a UTA myself - because he inspired and assisted me as I needed it, because he really loved teaching his sections.

Another "brother" is a good friend and study buddy of mine. I don't know why he continues to be my friend - he offers me all kinds of guidance and assistance, and (from my perspective) I offer very little in return. For example, we met in STAT 355, and started studying together for the second exam. He explained countless examples to me, and I knew I wanted him to help me study for the rest of the semester. Just this afternoon, even though he had plenty of work of his own to do, he helped me debug my code for a class for over an hour. When I was dizzy and woozy from giving blood, he was genuinely concerned about me. We've had lots of great chats, and I really value his friendship. He's not that much older than me, but enough that I've assigned the "big brother" status in my mind.

My most prominent "big brother" figure is, of course, my cousin. He's almost two years older than me, and for as long as I can remember, I've loved him and wanted to play with him when we'd see each other over holidays. Thanks to technology, he and I can stay in touch even though we're miles apart at different universities, and he offers me perspective on my life, since he can actually see it from a removed stand point.

Those are just a few of the "big brothers" that came to mind, it's not an exhaustive list (and it's only the ones who are current - I've had some 'big brothers' from the past who are less involved in my life now, like my NavYouth leader, who I can't write about here because it would get way too long). I'm sure even if you have an actual big brother, you have these people in your life too - they're just so significant to some one who doesn't have one related to her by blood.