Happy birthday to a sister extraordinaire

It’s my little sister’s birthday. Somehow when my other siblings have birthdays, I don’t really notice that I’m aging. When the youngest in the family turns another year older, it hits differently. Maybe, just maybe, I’m getting older after all.

But no complaints here. I’m grateful for all of it. And I’m especially thankful for my sister Treasa.

Imagine the coolest person you’ve ever met. Maybe she can dance or quote from Fred Astaire movies or homeschool five children at once or knit or make homemade donuts or read Jane Austen novels. Most people can do at least a few things well. The thing about Treasa, though, is that she can do all those things—and all at the same time.

Well, maybe she needs to put down the book to take the donuts out of the oven. But then she’ll offer to roll them in cinnamon sugar, and you’ll be wowed all over again.

Treasa has this uncanny ability to learn basically anything. For my baby shower 14 years ago, she made bracelets with a special Chinese knot in them and gave them out as favors. We just acted like that was an ordinary thing to do—because for Treasa, it is. Other people post on Instagram about doing cool things. Treasa just does them, and they happen, and the world might never know.

Somehow, in the midst of all her amazingness, she also replies to my texts on numerous unrelated topics, often in the same string. She is encouraging and calming and witty and insightful. She takes my unannounced Facetimes—does anyone else do that? She is an outstanding proofreader who will probably find three errors in this post and reach out swiftly and gently to let me know.

And, even with everything that she is balancing, she’ll still offer to pick my son up from school when I’m busy—and chances are that she will do it again. That’s just how she is.

Sisters are, after all, magnificent. I am fortunate to have three exceptional sisters—and they are some of my closest friends. But today is not about all of my sisters. It’s about Treasa. And she’s the youngest, so the other two understand that. We all understand that.

Treasa is special. She loves cows and PEZ and art history and reading. She always has a reading recommendation, or even a pile of books to add to my nightstand. We’ve read books in a sort of relay race or years apart or the same actual shared book together, like when we read the Harry Potter books aloud. We would take turns, reading a chapter aloud, and we never ever moved forward in the book on our own, leaving the other sister behind.

Sisters are special. And today is Treasa’s special day. I’ll stop by to drop off a gift—something silly and practical because that’s my gift-giving style. Maybe this is the year I will finally give her the baby cow I’ve talked about for years. Or maybe that’s for next year.

Happy birthday, Treasa. Thank you for being you.

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