I believe my sister is keeping a secret, she is a Saint.

My sister and I share a great relationship and I admire her in so many ways I can hardly count them, but I will try. Over the years the three brothers have scattered across vast distances while my sister stayed close to the home front. Each of us brothers had our own reasons for moving away, I won’t speculate on the reasons of my brother’s but for me it was a 10 year hitch in the military that ended in Florida, no snow so I stayed, what can I say. Regardless, my sister has been the only one who remained close to home and has been there alone, close to my parents for quite some time. When I left all those years ago, I never considered what responsibilities might fall to her, due to proximity, as my parents got older.

Some years ago, my Father suffered a stroke and has experienced a steady list of medical issues, requiring my sister to be involved. Handling things from filing for Social Security benefits to picking doctors to helping with medication management and weekly visits from the nurse. Since his initial stroke, his health issues have not slowed let alone stopped. My sister lived a few hours away and MANY times would stop what she was doing to go take of a need for Dad, including settling arguments with the apartment manager where Dad lived. When Ohio turned from Red to Blue, politically, my sister was forced to relocate to find work. This relocation has moved her into the same town as Dad. I cannot imagine the additional work that this has created for her. I am not speaking ill of my father only pointing out the sacrifices my sister has made in order to care for him. I have talked to her countless times from the hospital and NEVER heard any animosity, frustration or anything other than deep concern for Dad. I do not think I would have that level of strength were the roles reversed.

My Sister was also left to deal with my Mom’s battle with Alzheimer's, I can’t speak for my brothers but that scared me, in a way that I have never been scared before. I was glad my sister was there, she is so much stronger than I am that it embarrasses me. Before Mom was too far into her battle she made my sister medical power of attorney, my Mom realized that my sister was the only one in our family strong enough to make the decisions that she knew would need to be made. I still cannot imagine the pressure she must have felt, I would have withered under that much pressure. I cannot remember the number of times she made the 4+ hour trip to be with Mom for this test or that procedure or just to hang out. When my sister called me the other day with the news from the Hospice nurse that the end was near it made my heart hurt, more so for my sister than for my mother, in my mind I had already lost mom to Alzheimer's. Maybe someday I will be on that end of that kind of phone call but this time I was glad my sister was there, her strength and courage is unmatched and I knew she could do the right thing.

My sister has been able to take care of our parents while maintaining her own sometimes complicated life, She has long been the axis of our family. She has worked tirelessly to maintain relationships with parents, siblings, kids, in-laws, outlaws - you name it and she was able to keep the faith and be a better person, bowing to whatever it would take to maintain the relationship. No matter who was fighting, she was working to mend the relationship, at least she kept us informed on what the others were up to. I admire her quiet determination, in all my life I cannot remember her ever complaining, about anything and she has faced adversity throughout her life. She is the strongest person I know, emotionally and spiritually who ALWAYS does the right thing, especially when no one is looking. I admire her in so many ways and can only hope to live my life in the way she lives hers. She is a Saint and I want everyone to know it because she would never ask for anything, a Saint does not do the work for the recognition they do it, all of it, because it is the right thing to do and that it needs doing.

I love and respect my sister and I want everyone to know what a great person she is.