Sisters

I spent the day with my sister and it was fun. I do not live in the same state with her, so I do not get as many opportunities to talk, hang out, and plan activities.

Growing up we were raised by the same mom and dad, and I remember how we would go to the library in the summer, in downtown Goldsboro to pick books for the reading program. We had to pick fiction, non fiction, biographies, science fiction, autobiographies and more. Mom said that biographies and autobiographies were her favorite and my favorites were fiction. I am not sure what my sisters favorites were but both of us did a lot of reading growing up. We had a lot in common and there were also a lot of differences.

Tina was the youngest and I was the second oldest of five girls. I went to NC State and she went to UNC chapel hill. I got a degree in journalism with a minor in history and she got a degree in English.

I went on to have five children and worked in nursing, journalism and personal training, while she had no children, and worked as the CMO of a major architectural firm. But while we are wildly different, we have always had a ton of fun hanging out together and she is a beast when it comes to fitness. I run and do weight training for exercise, and she does orange theory.

I like shopping for antiques and she likes walking her dog.

Recently, I learned that she and a friend of hers decided to take gun classes from an expert so that they would know how to handle a gun and how to shoot.

The gun she chose was the glock 19 handgun.

I do not know anything about guns but it was so interesting to hear how this gun class went. It was held in August in the heat of the summer outside. The first few hours, the gun was not loaded with bullets as the participants had to learn how to load and unload a gun, how to carry a magazine, how to aim and how to shoot.

In contrast, when my sister was loading a gun, I was loading my paintbrush with paint, and when she was carrying a magazine on her belt, I was carrying canvas’s and aiming for a beautiful palette.

My sister said that she had to wear headphones, and long pants and mosquito spray. She had to borrow a belt and she said she felt like she had to walk with a swagger in order to keep the equipment in the right place.

I had to wear an apron, and hold a phone in order to be able to look at my representative art. I had to sit on a stool in order to reach the easel

She learned about her dominant eye, and learned how to walk and shoot in different directions…and I learned how to see artistically, and learned how to do impressionism and realism.

My sister got stressed when everyone was shooting at the same time, and I got stressed when the painting I was doing did not look like what I wanted it to look like.

There is such a difference between shooting and painting, but at the end of the day, my sister and I can each appreciate what the other is trying to learn, and can appreciate the end result. My sister is not afraid to handle a gun now, and knows how to shoot and hit a target, and I am not afraid to attempt a difficult painting, and give it my own style and flavor.

My sister has now said that she wants to learn how to paint and has taken at least one class in watercolor…she painted a lovely shamrock that I have in my kitchen.. I told her that I would like to learn how to effectively use a gun and hope to take a class with her someday soon.

That’s what sisters do and in doing so, we gain perspective and understanding and gratitude for our differences.