Brothers

Growing up,I could count on one hand how many girlfriends i had. Maybe 2 or 3 at most, maybe. Sure, i had girls who hung around, but they were usually interested in my brother and were using me to get to him. I've had a lot of the same guy friends since preschool. Seriously. They were the ones who got me through elementary school.  When I was in 6th grade, i got really lucky and fell into this amazing group of guys who, to this day, i consider to be my brothers. We may not talk all of the time and we have managed to loose touch over time and of course, reconnected through facebook. These are the guys that i trust more than anyone. True, i'm closer to some of them than others, to one above everyone, but these guys, they made me who i am..the mother, wife, auntie and friend that i am. They continue to push me to be a better person every day of our lives. I have watched these guys grow from annoying kids to absolutely amazing men. In recent years, we've shared more than our fair share of joy..marriages, the births of our amazing kids, our kids proudest moments. We've also shared our fair share of heartbreaks too. Most of us have had our first go at marriage fall apart around us, we've lost friends and classmates, most of us have lost grandparents, some of us have lost parents and at least one of us has felt the unimaginable loss of a child. These guys are my heart and soul. Every good thing in my life is the result of having grown up with them and as i get older, i know what's important. Friends are the family that you chose for yourself and i made some damn good decisions way back then. Do we still fight? oh hell yeah. Do I drive them to the brink of insanity? of course..its a gift i have. Football season is a bitch. I'm the only one of us with good taste in teams. I have no idea where i went wrong with these guys, but they have absolutely terrible taste in teams. I know for a fact that they think the exact same thing about me...we ride each other about it all the time. The thing is, when i talk to any of these guys, about anything..i feel better. these are the guys who will never lie to me. If i'm being over dramatic, you better believe i'll hear about it. if i'm upset and have valid reason, they get protective. these guys are the men i hope my sons grow up to become. See, as we get older (most of us are sneezing at the big 40), life changes. You go through stuff and you look back at how you got where you are. The road isn't always pleasant, but you see who was there with you. Being the guys girl that i am, rarely have i had occasion to tell them how proud i am of them and how much i love them, so i'm doing that now.