Doug

Now...its just not possible to mention one brother without mentioning the other, in my case. I can't talk about how one is my hero and leave the other one out. That just doesn't happen. Because, I love my other brother just as much and regard him as a hero too.

Doug is eight years older than me. That is quite a gap, but he has never looked down on me for it. It did interfer with our relationship in the earlier years, because he didn't want to play with his extremely immature sister. We were much too different and there was just this enormous breach between us.

But as years went on, we slowly overcame this obstacle. He has been such a good friend to me. He and I think way to much alike sometimes. We get these devilish ideas or plots and because both of us are so mischevious, they get carried out with swift accuracy. We are always insane when we are put in the same room as each other. We just can't hold back the wild chilren inside of us. We make up words and languages named "Jenesshish" and "Douglashish" and such. We screw up our sentences beyond any semblance of recognition, yet somehow the other understood perfectly and are even able to respond. And the responses sometimes don't make sense either, but we know what we're talking about, and that's all that matters.

Both of us have loved to read since we were very young. We both had vocabularies of around 70-80 words at the age of a few months. He has always been the one that I could go to and ask for an opinion on a certain book, if it was worth my time or not. He has introduced me to some of the most fantastic worlds through our reading. Yes, I have been a little more adventurous in my exploring, and have ventured places that he scoffs at, but he still respects my well-roundedness because of it.

Also, he has always included me in his adventures into composing music. He is always eager to show me what he has written since the last time I saw him, even if he had only written a measure or two. He wants my opinion and feels if I disapprove, its just not good enough, and he will rewrite it. He even once said to me "I won't marry any girl you don't approve of." I laughed at him, but he was completely serious! He really valued my opinion and was willing to sacrifice so much because of it.

He also gave me my love of the cinema. Devin gave me my love of making movies, but Doug gave me my love of just sitting down and enjoying a well-made movie. We have been "movie-buddies" for as long as I can remember. We get excited over the thrill and anticipation of seeing a movie first, before anyone else. We download countdowns on the computer, we put up posters all over the house, and we quote trailers line for line, until we finally see that movie. Then, we quote the entire movie, line for line, until our family and friends are so sick of us not making any sense, that they shun us.

Doug has been such a sturdy person in my life. He is a bit obsessive-compulsive when it comes to cleaning his room (he alphabetizes his c.d.'s...and he has over 100!!!), and he may become a bit stressed and not too fun to be around when he is going to school, but he is so stable. I can depend on him for almost anything. I say almost anything because he IS married now and he has other priorities...but that means so much to me. I despise being abandoned and feeling like I am unimportant. He tries his best to make me feel needed, and when I am with him, I feel like nothing can go wrong!

Doug is also like a father to me. He holds my hand in a huge crowd so I won't get lost. He makes sure my dates treat me right or he threatens to beat the crap out of them. He makes sure I am feeling alright, and he takes time whenever possible to touch bases with me and get a Jenesse-update.

Devin may be my knight in shining armor, but Doug is the trusty side-kick who is always there to pull us BOTH out of a jam. He is my strength, my partner in crime, and the person who I can share my love of learning with.

Doug is a hero in my life...