Thinking About, What If?

 

Thinking about, What if?

What if I had grown up with

a sister as part of my family?

Would that have resulted in a

better sibling relationship?

I am the middle child of

three boys, each approxi-

mately one year apart.

Some would think that

brothers would foster a

greater bond. And that

may be the case in some

families, but not in mine.

We three brothers were so

different in looks and per-

sonalities. And those who

knew us found it difficult

to believe that we were

part of the same family.

My older brother and I fought

constantly, and the youngest

did his best to separate from

the fray.

An older sister may have

been one to look up to;

a younger sister may have

been one for an older

brother to affectionately

honor and protect.

How come Mark gets to do

this and that, and I don’t?

Why does David always get

the biggest slice of pie?

I’m better looking and have

more muscles than he.

The comparatives between

brothers can be uncompro-

misingly brutal.

He stole my baseball glove

and traded it to Ronnie Barker for

a bat. Where’s the brotherly love?

Look at Cain and Abel, I used to

think. How did that arrangement

work out?

At least if someone disrespected

a sister (had I been blessed

enough to have one of those),

I could have punched the rotten

bastard in the nose.

My older brother would have

chased me all over the place

with his bat had I punched him

instead. The younger brother

couldn’t have cared less.

           -30-

Chris Hanch 6-30-2021