“There comes a time in your life when you have to choose to turn the page, write another book or simply close it.”
―
A Sister Here & Gone
“Hi – apparently I’m your sister.”
These are the five words of a particularly short conversation shared between myself and my sister. A moment I longed for had finally come and I was surprisingly unprepared for how abruptly the moment would come to an end.
Our hands locked in a handshake as we shared pleasantries as I introduced myself, my husband and our kids. While I tried to remain calm and relaxed, it was drastically apparent that she was in a state of shock.
Small conversations with our mother, Jane, led me to believe that my sister, this early-20’s small-town girl, knew of my existence. That was not the case.
“I don’t mean to be rude but I just learned about you an hour ago.”
My heart sank. A person I knew had existed for most of my life completely blindsided by Jane’s insecurities of a decision she made nearly 30 years prior.
As quickly as she entered the room, she retreated back to the bedroom where she was staying for the weekend. Silence fell across the living room where my family sat along with birth cousins and aunts and uncles. The sound of the Chiefs-Ravens AFC Championship game occupied the void.
Just as quickly as the book opened, it closed.