Sibling Revelry

A friend loves at all times,
And a brother is born for adversity.  Proverbs 17:17

A recent family tragedy has brought my siblings closer. We are circling the wagons around the broken hearted one, trying to keep away any more hurt. Our attempts to protect our sibling are fierce and flawed, wholly inadequate but well intentioned.

Thinking about how much I love my siblings brought to mind two uniquely different sibling stories. The first, a pair of siblings who failed to appreciate one another, their rivalry splitting an entire town apart. The other, a pair that remained loyal during the worst form of adversity, inspiring heroic action.

The first story takes place pre World War 2 in the German town of Herzogenaurach. Brothers Adolph and Rudolph Dassler were shoemakers with an eye for the future. They understood the concept of marketing their shoes to well known athletes. Fifty years before Michael Jordan signed his multi million dollar contract with Nike to endorse the famous ‘Air Jordan’ sneaker, the Dassler brothers achieved renown at the Berlin Olympics. African American Jesse Owens won four gold medals in the 1936 Berlin games while wearing Dassler track shoes -in front of Adolph Hitler. The sweet triumph of the Dassler brothers would be short lived, as World War 2 forced the brothers to serve the Nazi party, which delayed their ability to design and market shoes. Once the war was over, business and personality differences fractured the company irrevocably. The Dassler brothers went on to each form their own athletic shoe companies, Rudolph would go on to form Puma, and Adolph Dassler took a combination of his first name ( Adi, as he was known) and Das, short for Dassler, and created Adidas. The bitter feud between the brothers split the town for decades to come. Citizens who worked for Puma didn’t associate with those who worked for Adidas, and vice versa. The Dassler brothers passed away in the 1970’s without reconciling, buried at opposite ends of the local cemetery. Thankfully, the town ended the rivalry in 2009, by playing a friendly soccer game.

The second sibling story is so incredible it inspired a movie. Betty Anne Waters, a Rhode Island waitress with a high school equivalency education and mother of two young boys, was challenged to go to college, then law school by her brother, Kenny. Kenny Waters had been wrongly convicted for murder and upon being incarcerated, he attempted suicide. After Kenny spent a month in isolation, Betty Anne made him promise to never hurt himself again. Kenny agreed, under the condition that Betty Anne return to school. Eighteen years later, with her marriage ended and her sons living with their father, Betty Anne completed college and law school and fought to find evidence that had been hidden to free her brother. In 2001, Kenny Waters walked out of jail a free man – hand in hand with Betty Anne.

When I reflect on Proverbs 17:17 – “A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity,” it makes me think of how God desires us to be good siblings. To be there for one another during adversity – be it a World War or a faulty murder conviction. Or any other tragedy or adversity.

I am blessed with great siblings. If I put them into categories – they’d be that cheesy Live, Laugh, Love slogan you see on wall art in craft stores. My older sister is Love. She wears her heart on her sleeve, and will gladly carry yours as well. Her ability to love so deeply is a both a burden and a blessing. When she feels sadness, her empathy becomes her Kryptonite. There just aren’t enough tissues to cover her tears. When she feels joy, she is visibly effervescent and magnetic to be around. It’s like being pulled into a planet’s gravitational pull, in the best way.

My older brother is Live. He has been around the world numerous times, with incredible stories to tell. He has often reminded me of how to live my life – forward. Not wasting time dipping my toes in the waters of regret. He has forced me to get out of my own way, clear my head, recognize a real problem for what it is. His gruff advice has helped me more times than I can count.

My younger sister is Laugh. Any time spent with her is a guarantee that I will laugh until I can’t breathe or worry about finding the nearest bathroom. I find myself unwinding near her, as she exudes a calm presence, that of a peacekeeper. Just when she lulls me into that state of calm, she unleashes a well timed joke, comment or impression that will have me wondering how she tricked me into not noticing that sparkle in her eye that I missed before she hit me with the next round of giggles.

If you are not a sibling – be a friend who ‘loves at all times.’ And if you are a sibling, I hope you have siblings as wonderful as mine. As children, it was sibling rivalry. As adults, it is sibling revelry.

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