I am sure many of us have a sibling who is a huge pain in the butt or is considered a favorite. I come from a large family, six other siblings and two parents to be exact. We all range in different ages. To be honest, I do not get along well with all of my siblings. However, their has always been one sibling that I have always admired and been closest to. This is my sister who is about a year and a half younger than me. Maybe our closeness in age has brought us to do so many things together. For that I do not mind, and I hope you do not either.

Together we have had some of the best times but unfortunately some of the worst. The best times we had together growing up were fun and taught me what having a sister close to my age is all about. We could both easily get away with matching outfits growing up. Mom loved to put us in the cutest patterned flowered dresses. I remember you always wanted to wear blue since blue is your favorite color and I always wore pink. Being the little sisters that we were, we loved getting matching hair styles and doing our nails the same at parties we got invited to. We were such girls.

We were always put in the same dance classes. I was always known in dance and even in school to be more of the loud and outgoing one compared to you. However, it was better off that you had a more quieter personality since I usually managed to make myself look like an idiot at times. We looked so cute in our matching costumes. I did get jealous though when you were picked to do the heal stretch in the dances instead of me. But I must admit, you did it better.

Being in the same schools together constantly as we got older made going to school much easier. As you knew my struggles of disliking school, you welcomed me to sit with you at lunch. Those were some pretty funny times. I remember when you would have several classes and I would peak my head in to say hi and the teachers let me embarrass the heck out of you. I knew you wanted to kill me for that. Also being able to give you a gigantic hug at your locker and shout your name halfway down the hallway just to be obnoxious was my "sisterly" thing that I know you secretly hated but loved at the same time. I remember when we took child development and psychology together and the teachers would not let me sit near you so we could not talk. We still found our ways though.

Being in the same school we were bound to have the same friends except I usually strung along with your friends. I would get jealous when most of the guys wanted to talk to you. I always thought of you to be a bit prettier and thinner than I was. You knew I struggled to make friends and talk to boys. As much as I knew you got annoyed when I would tag along with you and your friends, you still let me. That was one of the more reasons why I knew you were a great sister.

I got sick in high school with my nerve disease and you knew I had it rough. You were the only sibling to help me carry my things to school and get adjusted at home. You helped me through the rough times when my depression hit. You did tell me and still tell me at times though to "Get over it" and "Try and do things yourself." I know it is not to be mean but just to push me.

We even worked at a summer camp together. That was quite an experience. I could not believe many of the employees thought we were twins. You were a sports counselor and a regular counselor for boys while I did my arts and crafts duties. I remember jamming out to Chris Brown and to the newest hits on the way to work every morning. At least we both still have the same taste in music. After working with each other at the camp for two summers though, I started to realize that we were not the close sisters that we used to be. This was a disappointment and even struggle for me that I did not want to face. However, I knew it was something that I needed to accept.

After high school and throughout college it is sad to say that we grew a part quite a bit. You had a boyfriend and we both went off to different schools. As we got older, It was hard for me to face the fact that you did not want me to be a part of your friends group as much anymore and that you actually wanted a life of your own. I admit I was upset and angry. We butted heads more as we showed more disagreements. I had to realize we were not the little girls in dance anymore. As I matured through college though, I realized at the end of the day you were and still are the sister who did everything with me growing up and I would not change that for anything. You still made time to come to my dance shows at school and other important events. I still get to hang with some of the friends we both share but you taught me it was time to branch out and make my own friends. You still let me call you on the phone during my "freak" attacks and I let you Facetime me just to see our dogs. We have inside jokes no one could possibly understand and we still allow one another to crawl into each other's beds when one of us has a bad night.

So, we may not wear matching outfits anymore or go to Friendly's like we used to. We do not get our hair done the same way and our interests do not collide like they used to. And that is okay. To my sister who is a closest to my age, I would not have it any other way. We may have grown apart but at the end of the day, you are still the sister who I can sing Rent soundtracks with and depend on when I need a hand. To the sister closest to my age, you have helped me through thick and thin. We have been through some of the worst times but have had some of the best times. I thank you for not only being a great sister, but a best friend.