Pete couldn’t remember meeting her.  He thought that was weird.  Then again, a big sister would’ve always been there, wouldn’t she have?  I guess he did have some early memories of her.  There was the often told bike incident with little Steven.  Oh, and for some reason he could remember her displaying shyness whenever it was clear she liked a certain boy.  And he’d never forget his favorite memory of their childhood.  It was the day he, ahem, stumbled upon a certain diary entry which contained a baggie of gum that she saved after she was given it–handed–directly from the mouth of a crush of hers.  (Not having much time for fear of being caught, he only found it because it prevented the book from closing properly).

He was so selfish that he always took credit for initiating his own desire to live with integrity.  Today, however, Pete finally took a minute and realized she necessarily would have been a founding influence, even if just subconsciously.  She did the ‘right things’ as a child, and not only stayed out of trouble, but was rewarded for it.  Rewarded with high grades at school, with being well-liked by everyone who knew her, and with achieving success in her passions.  Those were only a few of the things he unwittingly observed growing up with her.

She also never questioned or interfered with his dreams and pursuits.

Their only moments of tension came when he was too evangelical about the need for everyone to be like him.  Oh, and the morning when she criticized the smell of the slightly burnt scrambled egg-whites.  He was pretty upset at her for that.  What could he say?  Egg-whites were one of his only meals whose flavor he enjoyed some 60 days into the restrictive pre-contest diet, and she just had to say something, didn’t she?  Oh well.  On this day he is in no mood to hold grudges–he’s just sayin’.

These days he sees how she raises her family.  There is a lot of stress, there is a lot of yelling, there is a lot of frustration.  But what her children will remember is that there was a loving mom.  Always.  And that constancy, Pete and his sister (and their brother for that matter) knew from experience, was priceless.  In this moment of contemplation, he realized that her continuing to live with the values she demonstrated as a child should have never surprised him.  Either way, for him at least, the story only gets better.

There came a time when he needed help.  He needed someone he could rely on no matter what.  He needed a partner who wouldn’t judge him and who would hold him accountable.  His mind raced through the names of everyone he knew.  There was one name with which he couldn’t find fault, one name which he couldn’t dismiss, one name he knew he wouldn’t lie to out of respect, one name he knew would not let him off easy, and one name who would respect him through the journey.  There was one name whose unfailing love blinded her to weakness leaving only strength.

That name was Kate.  Thank you Kate.  And “Happy Birthday!”  All Good.