Ha!

I was the apple of my Father’s eye (well, until my brother came along). Father was 51 when I was born and 54 when my brother was born. He was quite a bit older than my mother and he had never had any children. Wow! Was I a surprise!

This picture of me was taken when I was 3 months old and Mother dutifully wrote on the back that it was my first picture. I suppose cameras were prized possessions back then and a luxury that not everyone could afford. I’m sure she scraped pennies here and there to buy one to capture freeze-frame the memories that unfolded on the farm.

I think my Father was a lot like me, humor-wise. I believe he enjoyed my antics and spent a lot of time laughing at the little things (as I did with my own children and now do with my grandkids). I believe, at his age, he knew what was important in life and was much more laid back about things in general. Basically, I could do no wrong-that is...until my brother came along. See the picture to the right-You will notice that I was cut out of the picture (by my Mother) but look where my Father’s eyes were..(not that I was acting up or anything to distract him, you understand). Anyway, was Charlie cute, or what? Did I think he was cute? Only when he was really little . After he got old enough to be noticed (for something besides crying), I considered him competition. I felt a lot like my good friend, Ruth. Ruth only had one brother, too. When asked what she wanted for Christmas, she replied that she wanted to be an only child, That’s how I felt about Charlie. I was seriously jealous of him. My Mother adored him and I, of course, was the "naughty one".

The real trial came when he was old enough to talk, "Mama, Sissy left the gate open, Charlie get out and get runned over". If he said it once, he said it 100 times. What did he THINK the plan was? Or...."Mama, Sissy is throwing stones at me!" WHAT a tattletale~-as if a little stoning ever hurt anyone!!!!

Time has a way of wiping away the jealousy and leaving a fond memory in its place. Today I know that I am blessed to have a brother that my parents adored and that I adore now. But, I will let you all in on a little secret- "Father liked me best"! HA!