Life is funny, isn’t it?

One day, you are 4 years old teaching your baby sister how to walk (and, yes, despite popular claim to the contrary that is exactly what happened) and then, suddenly, both of you live on two different continents.

In one minute, you and your 6-year old sister are inseparable and dance tirelessly to Kelly Family songs (anybody remember this band?) and in the next moment you hug each other goodbye for your lives’ paths send you in opposite directions.

It all seems like a blink of an eye and yet, there are many painfully tragic years in between those fantasy-filled childhood lives and the equally adventurous present.

Life is funny and so is time.

No matter how hard you try to hold on to those precious childhood moments, no matter how much you would love to go back to that intimate, pure relationship, no matter how much you wish that life won’t change on you, you don’t stand a chance, the clocks won’t stand still.

It is good, I guess, as the bad times come and go just as the good times do, but why won’t the good times stick around for a bit longer?

Why can’t we go back to that place in time where we were still innocent and blissfully unaware of adulthood and facing life-changing decisions?

Because it’s life or just because?

One thing I have learned though is that the harder you hold on to something, the more it hurts to let it go. The more terrified you are of change, the more destructive it will be for you in the end.

My Sister, My Constant

There is one consolation for the ever-evolving nature of living, which is the fact that there are those few constants that never leave your side.

In my case, this constant is my sister. Yes, we don’t just look completely differently, have entirely different characters, but we also chose completely different lives.

She spends half her year in a third-world country, while I live in one of the most expensive cities in the world.

She decided to go the conventional route and study to be a teacher, while I dropped out of college to build my own business.

She has always been the strong one, while I clung onto her for the majority of my teenage years.

And that is exactly the point. We are different, but we belong together.

We can go months without really having a heartfelt and focused conversation, but once we get together again, it feels as if we have never been separated.

We can go out into the world and make our unique experiences, completely opposite of one another, but then come back to a place of unity in a matter of seconds.

We can remain silent for the larger part of a trip and feel completely at peace and at ease with each other.

We can because we belong together.

We can because a sisterly relationship is special, intimate, empowering and lifelong.

This Knowledge Gives Hope

Hope in the form of certainty that change is not to be feared because our constant will keep us sane and safe.

Hope in the form of knowing that the more enamored you are with the present, the more confident you can walk into the future.

Hope in the form of realizing that letting go of something old only makes room for something new to blossom and flourish.

Hope in the form of excitement about not knowing what is behind every single turn on the road of your life, but that it will be awesome.

Hope in the form of appreciating that life never stands still and that it only gets more beautiful the more layers of time you add to it.

And hope in the form of assurance that, despite everything, some things, some people, some relationships are here to stay.

Happy 22^nd Birthday, my beautiful Valerie. I wish you nothing but bliss, fortune and LOVE for this next year of your life. I you to pieces.