Be nice!
Does anyone else remember being in high school and hearing the Baz Luhrmann song “Wear Suncreen”, which was full of advice for our future? I recently tried calling it up on google because one of the bits of advice had stuck with me and was replaying through my mind. It had to do with siblings and reminding us to be nice to them because they are essentially the only person in our own generation who we will know our entire lives. I discovered that the song originated as a 1997 Chicago Tribune article by columnist Mary Schmich (Oh Baz, here I thought you-the director of Moulin Rouge, and Strictly Ballroom (we’ll pretend Australia was a fluke), was dispensing your own genius for all these years).
Anyway, Mary’s actual words regarding siblings are: Be nice to your siblings. They’re your best link to your past and the people most likely to stick with you in the future.
It’s completely true that no one else has seen my past (triumphs and warts together) in the same way as my twin sister. When we’re all old and in rocking chairs, it’s occurred to me that my sister will have had more years in a relationship with me that anyone else in the world.
Now as a mom of twins, I have a dream that my boys will magically form a two man team and take on the world together. Never a gray thought towards the other, never a brawl, or harsh word; essentially an eternal three-legged race. Ridiculous? Yes. And even more so when the dreamer is a twin herself. You’ll be happy to know it’s already been clearly abandoned, as the following daily scenario attests:
R steals S’s toy. S gets mad and attempts to bite R. Mama intervenes. And repeat.
That cute box video I just posted? I had to trim out the part where they were both in the box, shouting and shoving to get the other brother out. Sometimes they both want a hug, and as I wrap them up in my arms they each curl their outer arm around me and use their inner arm to push their brother aside.
On the other hand R has been known to see himself in the mirror and call out: Brabra (translation: Brother)? They already seem to have a few inside jokes, and moments of utter delight in one another. These are the gems I collect and catalog as we get ever closer to the terrible 2s.
But as they get older I think they might hear Mary’s advice echoing in our home long before high school rolls around. I want them to picture themselves as old men in rockers, and remember that the only person in the world who’s known them as long as they’ve known themselves is their brabra, I mean brother.
For Mary Schmich’s amazing full article of advice, which I highly recommend you all read, go to:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/columnists/chi-schmich-sunscreen-column,0,4054576.column
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