Over the last few weeks, all eyes in my family have been focused on my sister- with new Personal Records every practice, and Worlds getting closer every second. The skill level she possesses is enough to leave me, my family, and my team in the dust- especially after placing 5th in her category at Worlds and winning the new US Female Youth A Record. Words cannot describe how proud I am of her- how happy I am that she achieved her goal and got the chance to compete in China. But she's still the same person.
To our friends, family, and acquaintances, Piper has transformed into an almost godly being, an unbelievably incredible climber. To me, she's still just my sister. People don't seem to realize that Piper and I were climbers long before she qualified for World Championships. Piper has been speed climbing for years, and she's been climbing for even longer. My dad, my sister, and I have lives almost completely centered around the sport, but Piper's single competition doesn't define our sport, our team, or our family.
I have grown up in a continuous unspoken competition with my older sibling. We are compared with our grades, our intelligence, our physical appearance, and our athletic abilities. It doesn't help that we both play piano and climb. It's easy for people who don't know us very well to think of us as "Piper & Shae" instead of individual people. So when Piper qualified for her competition in China it was a shock that I didn't qualify too. If I got a dollar for every person who asked me why I didn't go to China with them, I could probably afford to go to China.
At the risk of sounding incredibly stuck-up, I am still a climber. I'm not as fast, not as good, and not as competitive, but I am still a climber. Being the younger sibling to Piper is like trying to fill a pair of shoes that hasn't stopped growing. Although both my sister and I enjoy several similar things, we are more different than most people think. I am usually considered the more friendly, extroverted one, while Piper is viewed as quieter. There is much truth in that, but it's not exactly true. The things I enjoy (climbing, piano, and even writing), I prefer to do on my own. I don't necessarily like performances or competitions as much as Piper.
Piper may be better than me at the things we do together, but I am my own person.
