The Brother

My brother is married with 2 young children.  Typical suburban bliss of a life.  He married my college roommate (maybe I should be specific since I went to a LOT of college... he married my first roommate), settled into a house with a secluded backyard and seems to be living his version of the American Dream. 

I suspect he thinks I'm a sociopath.  I am the perpetually unmarried, childless-by-choice little sister that he politely invites to the kids' birthday parties while internally wishing I'd have other plans.  "Here's my sister, the only Party of One in the entire manicured backyard lawn party.  She's really a nice girl even though she talks about homicides and can't cook and is allergic to children.  Oh, and SHE LIVES WITH OUR PARENTS... but shhhhh don't mention that."  Ok, maybe that's the dialogue in my head and not his voice but it's pretty much the sum of every family function I attend.

My sister-in-law is envious of my annual girlfriend getaways and my ability to follow a friend's cover band around at will.  Her goal in life was to become a mommy; it seems that once that was accomplished she thought about how she should have traveled and enjoyed married life a bit first.  But, she's great with the kids and she deals with my brother making a living by carting corpses around at all hours of the night.  Being married to a funeral director can't be a great bragging point for her to tell her friends and co-workers but it pays for her and the kids food and clothes so it'll do.  She has a knack for bringing up my personal life (or usually lack thereof) at these parties... elbowing me near the bounce house and saying "why don't you try Match.com".  Seriously?  Advice from the girl who I paid my brother to go out with because her cheating boyfriend broke her heart and I couldn't take the wailing all night long in our dorm anymore.  I see that she is well intentioned and I pass the comment off by saying how cute the kids are even though kids come close to repulsing me.  If she only knew how I was actually handling my "single" life. :)

I suppose I'm the "road less traveled" kind of girl and it suits me.  I never wanted babies, marriage eludes me, and I work with 300 men so I realize the prince charming routine is for Lifetime movies.  Still, each time I visit my brother in his 3 bedroom, toy-filled utopia I can't help but think... "wow, all this is his... the kid who knocked me unconscious with a Tonka truck and made me eat bugs not too long ago." 

I excuse myself and head for the trampoline.  The crazy, single little sister can still squeeze into the kids world.  It's a lot more fun here.