This is my sister Mari and me – circa 1961.

Just as she is in this image, Mari’s always been there to look out for me.   Even (especially) when I didn’t know it.

We joke that we were both only children, since there’s 12 years between us.  Maybe that’s why we’re so close.

She used to let me hang out when she and her friends  watched The Beatles on the Ed Sullivan Show. She let me tag along on dates with she had with her boyfriend (who’s now her husband).  She even lets me have the very last black olive.

Mari is the person I call with cooking questions; TV programming related questions; when my spirit is low; when my spirit is high; when I can’t figure out how to do something (anything!) that most people know how to do; when I’m feeling scared; when I’m feeling triumphant; and when I can’t believe who just got voted off (or who’ll be the newest Judge on)  American Idol.

In short, my sister is my Go To gal.

Today is Mari’s birthday!

In celebration, I want to list some of the biggest lessons I’ve learned from Mari:

1.  being sisters trumps all;

2. as long as we’re not both going crazy at the same time, everything will be OK;

3. we both are responsible for making sure we’re not both going crazy at the same time;

4. no matter how tough life looks sometimes, calling each other will make it better;

5. there is room for compromise between country music and blues rock;

6. turning up the radio fixes most noisy car problems;

7. we can always call each other to complain and trust the the other won’t try to fix anything;

8. and (which is the lesson she’ll MOST want me to remember) NEVER, EVER tuck my T-shirt into my yoga pants.

I realize how blessed I am to have a sister who’ll tell me the tough truths, stand by me in the wonderful & awful times and always love me for exactly who I am – even/especially when she doesn’t agree.

If you have a sister you love like I love mine, tell us about her here!