Big Brother is Awesome
Today is my brother Aaron's birthday, so tis time for his birthday tribute.
I've been pondering really where to begin with Aaron. You see he is my older brother, and when I was younger I was jealous that he got to be born in Germany. What a jerk.
Growing up I think he and I had the toughest relationship. We weren't always bondy bondy. I've always looked up to Aaron though. He is really smart. I mean, all of my siblings are smart, but there is something about Aaron's intelligence that is striking. He is almost as smart as me! ;)
I think one of the great things about Aaron growing up was that he always gave me perspective on things. I was neurotic in school, probably starting in preschool. Getting straight A's was terribly important to me, and when I didn't, my life was over. I would literally fall apart. Aaron was always there with the perspective. "Lindsey, why do you care? It doesn't mean you're not smart." He'd always help me to see that bigger picture. Competing to be the best at everything is useless, you've just got to do the best that YOU can do. I think I've really developed that mantra better this past year, law school does that to you, but I think it was something I first learned from Aaron: keep your perspective, do your personal best, and nothing else matters(not that my parents didn't try to teach me that as well, but you know what they say about teenagers.)
Something funny about Aaron is that he'd always remember things that never happened. He'd always say, "no I remember! I was there!" We would stare at him blankly and I would say, "and then you woke up." He usually took this mostly well...
Now I will tell you the secret of Aaron. He is a very emotional guy. He tries to put on a cool detached front, but don't be fooled. He feels things. I don't mean he is a big baby, although I'm certain I've called him that ;), but he pays attention I guess. He'll do things for my mom when he notices she's upset. When Alicia had the chicken pox really bad and my mom was worried her face was going to be scarred forever, Aaron went out and bought her a CD because he felt so bad that she was sick, and really kinda gross looking (I love you Alicia, and you're beautiful, but lets face it, it was gross.) She also had them down her throat which made eating difficult, and it just touched on Aaron's tender heart.
As we have gotten older, our relationship has improved drastically. I think we both recognize that in some ways our personalities are different, but at the core we are the same, a couple of big sensitive babies :) When Aaron lived in Provo he let me borrow his car to go to the temple every week, and to do other things as well. He never even got mad at me when the job fell through that I set up for him that brought him to Provo in the first place. I never told him this, but I was so upset when that happened, I ended up having a nervous breakdown in my friend's apartment. He never blamed me though. He just made the best of it, and I think he ended up getting a job that he mostly enjoyed having, and it was really nice having him there for the summer. I wish we had hung out even more than we did, and I'm sorry about that one double date where my date was a loser. Although I guess that is water under the bridge now huh?
My brother was the first in our family to go on a mission for our church. At just 19 years old he left on a plane all by himself to go to Recife, Brazil, and speak in a language that he only had two months to learn, to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with people he didn't know for two years. How terrifying is that? Especially when you're the first of your siblings to go! I was so proud of him. He has such a strong testimony of the Gospel. I know this because he had some pretty rough trials on his mission, but he never gave up, he never quit, and if he thought about coming home early and not dealing with it anymore, he didn't tell us. He truly learned to love those people, and Brazil, and he was a great missionary.
Now he is twenty eight. He is engaged to a great girl, and on Aug. 7 he will not only become a husband, but a father to her two children (although, technically, he already pretty much is.) Aaron is great with kids, he is going to be an excellent father. I've already seen how he is with them and those kids adore him. Here in Yakima I clean this woman's house in the afternoon. I was telling her about my brother the other day and she said, "your brother sounds like a great guy." He is. Happy Birthday Aaron!
I've been pondering really where to begin with Aaron. You see he is my older brother, and when I was younger I was jealous that he got to be born in Germany. What a jerk.
Growing up I think he and I had the toughest relationship. We weren't always bondy bondy. I've always looked up to Aaron though. He is really smart. I mean, all of my siblings are smart, but there is something about Aaron's intelligence that is striking. He is almost as smart as me! ;)
I think one of the great things about Aaron growing up was that he always gave me perspective on things. I was neurotic in school, probably starting in preschool. Getting straight A's was terribly important to me, and when I didn't, my life was over. I would literally fall apart. Aaron was always there with the perspective. "Lindsey, why do you care? It doesn't mean you're not smart." He'd always help me to see that bigger picture. Competing to be the best at everything is useless, you've just got to do the best that YOU can do. I think I've really developed that mantra better this past year, law school does that to you, but I think it was something I first learned from Aaron: keep your perspective, do your personal best, and nothing else matters(not that my parents didn't try to teach me that as well, but you know what they say about teenagers.)
Something funny about Aaron is that he'd always remember things that never happened. He'd always say, "no I remember! I was there!" We would stare at him blankly and I would say, "and then you woke up." He usually took this mostly well...
Now I will tell you the secret of Aaron. He is a very emotional guy. He tries to put on a cool detached front, but don't be fooled. He feels things. I don't mean he is a big baby, although I'm certain I've called him that ;), but he pays attention I guess. He'll do things for my mom when he notices she's upset. When Alicia had the chicken pox really bad and my mom was worried her face was going to be scarred forever, Aaron went out and bought her a CD because he felt so bad that she was sick, and really kinda gross looking (I love you Alicia, and you're beautiful, but lets face it, it was gross.) She also had them down her throat which made eating difficult, and it just touched on Aaron's tender heart.
As we have gotten older, our relationship has improved drastically. I think we both recognize that in some ways our personalities are different, but at the core we are the same, a couple of big sensitive babies :) When Aaron lived in Provo he let me borrow his car to go to the temple every week, and to do other things as well. He never even got mad at me when the job fell through that I set up for him that brought him to Provo in the first place. I never told him this, but I was so upset when that happened, I ended up having a nervous breakdown in my friend's apartment. He never blamed me though. He just made the best of it, and I think he ended up getting a job that he mostly enjoyed having, and it was really nice having him there for the summer. I wish we had hung out even more than we did, and I'm sorry about that one double date where my date was a loser. Although I guess that is water under the bridge now huh?
He graduated from ASU from the Walter Cronkite school of Broadcast Journalism. They have one of the best programs for that in the country. Aaron is really good about making plans and sticking to them. He's been dealt a few hard blows, because he wants to work in an industry where you don't make any money, and jobs are pretty scarce these days, and not just because the economy sucks. He does what he has to do though, and his employers always see that. I'm pretty proud of him. He works in TV and radio. Yeah, does your brother do that? I didn't think so.
My brother was the first in our family to go on a mission for our church. At just 19 years old he left on a plane all by himself to go to Recife, Brazil, and speak in a language that he only had two months to learn, to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with people he didn't know for two years. How terrifying is that? Especially when you're the first of your siblings to go! I was so proud of him. He has such a strong testimony of the Gospel. I know this because he had some pretty rough trials on his mission, but he never gave up, he never quit, and if he thought about coming home early and not dealing with it anymore, he didn't tell us. He truly learned to love those people, and Brazil, and he was a great missionary.
Now he is twenty eight. He is engaged to a great girl, and on Aug. 7 he will not only become a husband, but a father to her two children (although, technically, he already pretty much is.) Aaron is great with kids, he is going to be an excellent father. I've already seen how he is with them and those kids adore him. Here in Yakima I clean this woman's house in the afternoon. I was telling her about my brother the other day and she said, "your brother sounds like a great guy." He is. Happy Birthday Aaron!
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