being an aunt

when my sister had her first baby, it was almost as if i had had my first baby.
maybe not exactly; i didn't have to go through a pregnancy or a delivery...

but i was so moved by the miracle of life - the idea of being able to CREATE life, that it changed me somehow. this realization struck me in a way it hadn't when my younger siblings were born.

and even though i was not, and am not, the mother to any of my sister's children, i love them in a profound and motherly (?) way. i take pride in all their gifts and talents, anguish over their obstacles, and feel an unwavering support and unconditional love for them.

as a little sister i cannot give my older sister the same gift. my kids cannot be to her what hers have been to me. having kids of her own already, it is somehow different. but i thank her for the wonderful gift she gave me. i love being an aunt to her monkeys.