"It's just so hard being a big sister sometimes"

Recently, after a particularly tearful and frustrating day, Ella approached me fully dressed in a princess ball gown and tiara. She had tears in her eyes and said "Mommy, it's just so hard being a big sister sometimes." She proceeded to tell me that she wanted to be the one to change the baby's diaper and feed all of the bottles. She said, "You get to do all of the big sister stuff!" Of course my first inclination was just to laugh because it was so cute but I realized to her these were real struggles. She genuinely wanted to care for Cora and it was incredibly touching to see how real her desire is to be the big sister.

Later that night as I was downloading recent pictures from our camera, I ran across this one.

I held my breath. It was almost identical to my favorite picture of me and my sister. It still catches me by surprise each time I see it. The innocence is breathtaking and so incredibly bittersweet.

After I studying those two images, I couldn't help but agree. Being a big sister is hard. Harder than I could have imagined. You can't always be the protector, teacher, or confidant. You can't always reminisce about the past or tell each other secrets or remember a shared history.

It's sometimes heartbreaking to watch these two little girls forge such a bond and not let the cynic or grief-stricken part of me ruin these times of innocence. I often fight back tears as I realize I have no idea or control over what sort of bond these two will have. Or how they will hurt each other or how close their relationship will be. The only thing I can hope is that they will share fond memories of a childhood filled with the partnership and companionship of a sister. The rest is too difficult to fathom right now.

But I was recently reminded of the poem "Goblin Market" that I read in a Victorian literature class in college. It's the cautionary tale of two sisters, Laura and Lizzie. In the poem, Laura becomes deathly ill as a result of tasting the forbidden fruit. Lizzie, in a final effort to save her sister, returns to the market and is nearly killed herself by the goblins but manages to save her sister's life.

The poem ends as the two women are both mothers and look back on the experience and tell their children:

"For there is no friend like a sister,
In calm or stormy weather,
To cheer one on the tedious way,
To fetch one if one goes astray,
To lift one if one totters down,
To strengthen whilst one stands."