Kim Wilbanks

If you google 1968, you will discover that it was a historically significant year in our country.  It was the year American astronauts orbited the moon for the first time and Boeing introduced a new aircraft, the 747.  It was also a year of tragedy and conflict; the assassinations of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Bobby Kennedy and the riots in Chicago during the Democratic National Convention.  However, there is one event which occurred in 1968 you probably won’t find on the internet, though it is arguably one of the most important events of that year.  My little brother was born!

Yep, FIFTY YEARS AGO, my little brother, Andy Edwards was born.  (I was already feeling old, the fact that my younger brother is turning fifty doesn’t help.)

He was an interesting little kid.  One of his signature moves as a toddler was to make the peace sign while saying “peeeaaaacccceee”.  After all, he was born in the hippie era.  As he got older, he would only wear football shirts.  For years, if the shirt didn’t have a number on the front or back, he wouldn’t wear it.  And since he had a January birthday, he decided at a young age to have half-birthday parties.  Every summer there was another birthday party with friends, presents and cake; the works.  When Mom decided he needed a spanking, he would invite all of his friends over to watch.  Let me just say, it has been an experience being his older sister.

This fiftieth birthday of my little brother has led to much reminiscing. 

First Meeting

Say Cheese

Siblings in Venice

A More Recent Photo

Things For Which I Would Like To Apologize

Please forgive me for:

• wanting to sell you as soon as I found out I had a little brother and not a little sister as I requested.
• dressing you up like a girl and calling you Andrea
• enticing you to follow me to the end of the driveway then yelling “Monster” and running back into the house. (It was so mean . . . but really funny.)
• telling all of my friends your name was “The Brat”
• taking naked pictures of you when you were taking a bath or skinny dipping with Cheryl and Steve.
• making you miss one of your high school baseball games to attend my wedding.
• barging in on you and . . . .whoops, never mind about that.
• all the times I freaked out on ski slopes, causing you to ski backwards while holding my skis
• being preachy and judgmental.

Things For Which I Forgive You

I forgive you for:

• stealing my babysitting money and buying toys.
• jumping on my head in the kiddie pool at Family Reunion the week before we were supposed to go to the beach, resulting in 3 stitches and no trip to the beach.
• tormenting the few dates I had as a teenager.

Things for Which I am Grateful

• all of the times you slept in that little bathtub/love seat outside my room when I was afraid of the dark.
• being a great travel partner; whether it was hiking a trail in the Smokey Mountains, touring Europe where everything was “more beautiful than you could imagine,” or the many family trips we have gone on.
• driving me to and from work when one of my students told me there was a rumor that some high school students were going to jump me the last week of school.
•  surviving two strokes so I wouldn’t have to be an only child.

Happiest of Birthdays to you Andy!  I hope you have many more birthdays to celebrate life, family and all the good things.  I love you much!

Your big sister.