To the most annoying, coolest, funniest, weirdest human being I know:

Just because we don’t hang out every day doesn’t mean I have stopped loving you any less. You are my partner in crime, my greatest confidant and my mortal enemy. I miss our weekends of doing nothing but binge watching TV and stuffing our faces with Sour Patch until our stomachs hurt. I miss family dinners where you refused to chew with your mouth closed and know just how to push everyone’s buttons.

I hope that while I’m off at college you never change; I hope you keep up with our epic streak on Guitar Hero, I hope you still wear cheap body spray that makes Mom gag, I hope you still refuse to ever eat cooked vegetables. You are such a wild and fun dude and deep down beneath all of the B.O. and Nike apparel, there is the biggest and fullest heart this world has ever known. There is no loyalty that can even compare to that of a younger brother. From day one you’ve been my biggest fan and personal assistant. I’ll never forget the one time you actually let me do your makeup, all of the times you let me boss you around as I choreographed our next dance routines and musical numbers, and the many times we fought tooth and nail over who got to pick the first book at bedtime. It’s amazing to see the adoration that a human can have for you like that of your younger brother. I’ll never forget when you had me read you the entire Captain Underpants series because you said I was “better at the voices than Mom and Dad were.” Yes, you loved to tattle but that’s only because you wanted what was best for me.

Here at college it’s hard to come by people who truly love you and adore you like a little brother does. Not everyone laughs at every single one of my jokes like you do, not everyone lets me hog the aux cord the entire drive like you do, not everyone wakes me up at 2 AM on a Thursday night to see if they can have deep talks with me. Not everyone’s eyes light up when I say I have the coolest story to tell you, not everyone is ALWAYS without a doubt ready for a Whataburger run wherever and whenever like you are. Not everyone is as dedicated to me as you always are, not everyone goes out of their way to surprise me with my favorite sodas or treats or random things when I’m feeling down.

Not everyone is dying to talk to me about how their day at school went, or begging me for relationship advice. It’s hard to find people in this world who look up to you as much as a younger brother will; the big sibling is the embodiment of everything that is amazing, awesome and beautiful in this world. In their eyes you are literally the coolest person alive. Not everyone is honored when you ask them to go run errands or hang out with you, not everyone is dying for you to be home on the weekends just so they can spend every second of the day with you no matter what is on the agenda. Just because we may not see each other every single day, in no way does that mean our crazy, reckless adventures will end. You’re still forever my video game second hand man, my tag team partner for pranking the heck out of Mom, the Lewis to my Clark of outdoor adventures and exploration. I love that you are always so excited to hear my crazy college stories and always whine about how unfair it is. But give it a little more time and you’ll get to live it up too. You’re just cursed to forever be seen as the baby, you might as well just come to terms with it.

You’re forever my little buddy and

best friend. So no matter how many times Mom tells you to grow up and start cleaning your room without being told to, NEVER CHANGE MAN!

XOXO,

Your Big Sister