Big brother

When I was in the first grade I told my entire class that my mom was pregnant...which she wasn't. Obviously I didn't quite understand "the birds and the bees" just yet and thought by proclaiming it to everyone that it would come true...which it didn't. Imagine my mom's surprise when a neighbor whose son was in my class called to congratulate her. The class had even made cards for my mom, which were shortly thereafter found under my bed where I had stashed them until she really was pregnant. I wanted a baby brother or sister so badly. Nonetheless, I have always loved having older siblings, though we definitely had our moments and there were times I wished I had an older brother instead! The day my sisters heard about Luke's diagnosis, they immediately went into big sister mode, searching the internet for information and inspiring stories. They assured us that they would be there for us no matter what, that everything would be okay, and that Luke would teach us all something about love, patience, and the importance of family.


At the ripe old age of 2 1/2, and having just been a big brother for 4 short months, I see the same protective qualities in Jackson that my sisters have always had over me. Of course I know the time will come when Jackson, Luke, and Olivia will be bickering and fighting over this or that, driving us bananas as my sisters and I used to do to my parents. On the other hand, I know the time will come when they will be the best of friends and will watch out for each other as only siblings can do. Although he's too young now to fully understand what's going on with Luke, I do believe that he knows something. Whenever we leave the house with just Luke, Jackson says, "Are you taking Luke to the doctor?" As Pete gets all of the materials prepared for the irrigations that need to be done each day, Jackson will say, "Daddy, are you doing Luke's irrigation?" Then he will dash quickly to gather his own pretend medical supplies from his doctor's kit. As Pete goes on to explain why we have to do it and that it makes him feel better, Jackson will then say, "It doesn't hurt him though, right?" There have been times when Jackson was sound asleep upstairs in his room, yet he would hear Luke crying during an irrigation and shoot up immediately, shouting "It's okay, Lukey!" over and over as loud as he could so that Luke would hear him. Yes, I know both Luke and Olivia will be just fine with a big brother like Jackson watching over them.