What is your relationship like with one of your siblings?

I haven’t spoken to my siblings in 20 years and never will again.

I have seven sisters and love them all.

I adore my brother and sister. They know me better than anyone. Growing up I want to be like my sister but preferred to play with my brother.

I have three sisters and we are all very close. I am 27, Meghan is 26 (on 3/25 anyway), Lorraine is 16 and Natalie is about to turn 14.

As we grow up together our relationship constantly changes. I adore each of them for very unique reasons and I adore all of them together for a lot of the same reasons.

Ani DiFranco sums it up pretty well: “I know there is strength in the differences between us. And I know there is comfort, where we overlap.”

I’m an only child, but I always wanted an older brother.

My little sister is the most important person in the world to me. I helped raise her while my single mom worked insane hours. I would die for her without so much as a second thought. I love all my step-siblings as well, but my sister is my world.

I have a younger brother (4 1/2 years younger). I was so mean to him when we were little, but now I just adore him. It’s really to a point where he can almost walk all over me… I feel very responsible for him and want for his happiness. We aren’t mushy towards one another (we don’t really hug or say I love you too much), but it’s an understood love. He reminds me a lot of our dad who passed away, so I love that about him.

I love my siblings, a brother and three sisters (two still living). Our shared history has forged an unbreakable bond. We can laugh like loons when we are together.

That said my siblings are not privy to the things closest to me emotionally.

As for biological relatives, I have a half-brother and sister who I’ve never met, and I am not sure that either of them live in this country, as their father was a foreigner. I have a cousin whom I was raised to view as my brother, but we no longer speak, and we were hardly on speaking terms for most of the years before the last estrangement. He didn’t like me very much.

However – there is a family that has more or less “adopted” me in since I left college, thanks to the care and concern of the mother of this family (may she and Dad rest in peace). My best friend’s mom told her about me and how I really needed a family. I have one “sister” to whom I’m especially close. I get along well with the other 10 siblings in a “Hail Sister, well met” way at family reunions and holidays.

I’m the baby of 6 kids. I have 4 half-sisters and 1 half-brother. Even though my brother is ten years older than me, we have the most in common. I think he has a lot to do with my love for the outdoors. He would always take me on his motorcycle or dune buggy, even though my mom forbid it. He even took me down the street in a kayak once when our street was flooded. He’s awesome!

I am the only girl of 3 older brothers. My youngest in age to me is one of my best friends. He is the main reason I have never moved away.

I have an older brother. We got along fine until he entered high school, and then I entered…he was a senior, I was a freshman. He HATED going to school with me. There was a lot of drama during my teenage years, and it really took all of my parent’s focus..I think he resented me for that. He was always having to stick up for me, and he then seemed embarassed of me. We didn’t talk for quite a few years. At least 4 or 5.
He and I now get a long. He works the graveyard shift, so he sleeps all day..I rarely see him. He’s great with my son though. He likes being an uncle.
We’re not super close. I think we’ll be closer once he gets married and has children. He gets along great with my husband though.

Wow @casheroo you give me hope!
I have a brother who is nine years older than me. When I was little I was everything to him, then I started getting older and changing and now we don’t speak at all he’s never held my baby either. He also hates my dad and doesn’t talk to him at all. Weird guy.

@adri027 Why does he hate your father? If you don’t mind me asking. My brother didn’t really have anything to do with my son til he was more mobile…I think most men are wary of holding newborns lol

My sister is 6 years younger than me, and I absolutely adore her. She was a dream come true when she was born (I’d been asking my parents for a little sister since I could talk), and we get along really well. There have been times when the difference in our ages made us grow apart a bit (it’s hard for an 18-year-old to relate to a 12-year-old), but now that we’re both adults, she’s one of my very best friends. We totally understand each other, and I am in absolute awe of the amazing person she’s become. I love having a sister!

@casheroo honestly I don’t know. My parents started falling apart and became alcoholics and lost EVERYTHING and they didn’t seem to show much interest In us so that’s probably why. But my brother had the best of my dad growing up if I was him I’d hate my mom. But he probably hates her too

we fought a lot when we were kids
everyone told us it would be fine when we grew up, and that we’d actually get along in the end

it was unthinkable, but 30 years later, it turns out they were right

No siblings. I think my birth scared my folks too much. However, I always wanted a little sister to protect.

Wanna know? See here .

I am an only child. I always wanted an older sibling (probably a sister) who would have kept me from being so alone in situations vs my mother, but that was not to be. Mom purposely had just one kid because she “didn’t want to be outnumbered.”

A number of years ago, though, Mom and her partner (they’re as married as two gay people can be in our state, which is to say they are in everything but legality) got together and I have two “step brothers.” They are slightly younger than me, and while I see them at Christmas and Thanksgiving and weddings, we’re not very close. They’re not really like brothers at all – probably since I didn’t grow up with them.

I have one older sister who will be 40 in 2 short years. I hardly ever speak to her because she is totally whacked out. When my niece and nephew were kids (they are now 16 and 18) I used to fight with her constantly about the way she treated them. She is/was just like my father, who was a horrible parent. The last time I saw or spoke with her was when my grandma died 2 years ago.

I’m the only girl of three older brothers too, @chyna. I get along best with my oldest brother because we enjoy so many of the same things and have the same sense of humor. I’m close with my other brothers too, we all like to hang out together when we can.

I have one older brother, but we fight sometimes. Othertimes we get along. Its confusing!

I have three big brothers and two little sisters. I get along with all of them but I am closer to some than I am to others. I am the closest by far with my youngest sister (gimmedat), I am probably closer to her than I am to anyone else in the world.

I have an older sister and I have 2 little half sister and I love them all to death and they are part of the reason that I am who I am today and I love them all very much. I am especially close to my older sister and she just had my niece and it has brought us closer together.

I have five younger brothers and sisters. The two older ones are closer to my age (they’re 19 and 15, I’m 22) and then there are three who are much younger (6, almost 8 and 9). To the young three I’m more of a third parent or an aunt than a sister, although my almost-8 brother absolutely worships me. It’s very cute. I adore him as well, and it’s probably good that I don’t live at home – I’d spoil him terribly.

I’m very close to my two older sibs. We grew up together, and have memories that no one else shares. That’s what I love about having siblings – they’re people who you share experiences and commonalities with that no one else can really understand. I have a really great relationship with my brother who’s next oldest. He’s my best friend.

I have a half-brother, 11 years younger than I am. We never met until I was 18 and he was seven, when I met my birth father. At first I was introduced as a cousin, until he got to know me and my father and step-mother knew I was going to be around for the long haul. He was very happy to find out I was his sister. I love him, but we are not terribly close, as we didn’t grow up together (the age difference factors in, too as well as geographical distance). I went to his wedding 2 years ago, and haven’t seen him since then. We talk a few times a year, and exchange Christmas cards. I have a nephew who’s almost one year old, and I haven’t gotten to see him yet. :(

My brother is 2.5 years older than me and we get along great. I’m off in college now and I really miss him.

I am an only child. I never really wanted siblings. I was quite pleased with myself not having to share a room, my clothes, my toys, and more importantly, my parents with anyone else. Being an only child has made me, as an adult, more open to very deep, lasting friendships than some of my friends who have brothers and sisters. They agree with that assessment saying simply that having siblings has made them less desirous of deep relationships with others since they already have that with brothers or sisters.

I have a big brother. He is the smartest person I know. He lives in Korea (he teaches english there) and I haven’t seen him in almost 2 years and I miss him so so much. But he’s on an adventure and there is always skype. So right now we talk a couple times a month. We get along really well. We have pretty much the same sense of humor. Oh man, now I really miss him.

I’m the oldest of four, two boys, two girls. Until the last yer or so, my brother (who’s only a year or so younger than me) was one of my best friends. We talked about everything. Then I got married, he got way into his job (he works for the Obama administration and the campaign was his life), and he had a couple of really bad breaks ( end of a relationship, ex-grilfriend with whom he was still in love got married, his car was stolen – twice) and we’ve grown apart. We seem to have nothing to say to each other right now, but I’m hoping, based upon all of your stories, that we’ll refind each other.
Now that my little sister’s in college on the East Coast, she and I have gotten much closer. I can finally talk to her about all the girly stuff that she was too young for when I was in college. It’s nice. She and I talked for an hour last night – I can’t think of the last time that happened.

Although I no longer live at home, I looooove my breaks from school, particularly because I get to see my siblings. My brother and I have a particularly special relationship. He’s six years my junior, but he’s just like me. He loves reading, loves music, and also plays guitar. he’s in middle school and already writes brilliant poetry and has amazingly apt philosophical ideas about the world. He takes after me exactly. (He’s also a ginger like me, so I guess we share that bond, too!)

One of my sisters and I are ten years apart. In many respects, she’s like a third parent to me.
As we get older, our relationship is changing. I think we’re rediscovering each other as adults.

There’s a lot of love there, but we’re very much two very different people. Recently, we were talking about how different personalities are drawn to different mediums. I’m partial to pencil and intaglio because they afford me the most control and attention to detail. I’ve learned to appreciate charcoal in figure drawing, but for the most part it still frustrates me. My sister is quite the opposite. Whereas I am more tight and controlled, she is fast and loose. She loves charcoal and paint, preferring to paint with a brush in each hand.

Despite these differences, my sister and I share a bizarre connection. Recently, I’ve been experiencing back pain. One day it was particularly bad. I literally crawled from my room to the kitchen. Probably one of the more pitiful things I’ve done. But, damn it! I was thirsty and I couldn’t stand up straight because of the pain in my back.

As it turns out, my sister was in a car crash around the same time that I was crawling across my apartment. (No one was seriously injured. But she did injure her back.)

This has happened several times in the past. (Though nothing as extreme as this recent incident.)
She’ll injure her left arm and I’ll develop a dull ache in my left arm. Or we’ll have a fever at the same time.

The funny thing is that I was much closer to my other sister growing up, finishing each other’s sentences and such. While this sister and I are rarely on the same page. But there is a lot of love there and that runs deep. Surviving a crazy family can be a bonding experience.

I have one sister who is 2 years older than me. Throughout my childhood, I always looked up to her and wanted to be like her. However, she was a bit of a rebel in high school, and did things that I would never do. I get frustrated at times because she has a more lax attitude about things like relationships, drugs, etc., and I try to get her to understand my more prudish attitudes. It doesn’t really work and I’ve learned to just let it be.

At the same time, she’s always made things with my family easier. My family is a bit dysfunctional (just like any family), and she’s always been able to cheer me up when things have been rough with my parents. For that I’m very thankful.

In many ways I still admire my sister and I love her very much. She just turned 24 and had her first baby, and I’m happy she’s finally starting to become a real adult. But she’s also taught me to be strong as my own individual self.

I have 6 siblings (older bro passed away 7yrs ago), 23 years from oldest to youngest, same parents.I love each of them in a different way, as follows:

Big Brother—12 years older. He taught me to play my first instrument, and was a role model in a lot of ways. He was an alcoholic, and I naively acted as an enabler for many years. He originally disapproved of my interracial marriage, but grew to love my wife in light of the positive changes he saw in me after I was married. His death angered me, and I felt guilty about that for a long time, but now I love him for who he was to me, and I can remember the good times.

Big Sister—10 years older. I was 10 when she got married, and actually lived with her and her family for awhile. Her husband was in politics, and was instrumental in shaping me into the liberal that I am today, although he has become very cynical and conservative in the past 20 years or so.

Younger Brother—3 years younger. Professional drummer. I was jealous of the career he achieved in music, because I tried and could not do the same. I overcame my jealousy when I realized my music career was just as successful as his, but in a different way. I remember teaching him how to read, and reading books to/with him at bed time.

1st younger sis—4 years younger. She’s the spinster in the family, and her heart is much larger than her bank account. She and I have many friends in common from our teen/young adult time.

2nd younger sis—5 years younger. Were a lot closer when younger, but have grown apart doe to spousal conflicts. My wife and her husband can’t stand each other. Also we’re 2000 miles apart. but I love her and miss her every day.

Baby sister—11 years younger Mom was pregnant with her at my older sister’s wedding. In many ways she reminds me of myself. Also a very close relationship.