I never thought the day would come when I wouldn’t know my sister anymore. I knew time changed people, but never in my wildest dreams had I thought it would come down to this. Growing up, I looked up to Rebecca as my idol. Even though they never wanted me to play with them, Beck would always let me join. We grew close to one another, telling stories and sharing secrets. It was almost like the seven year difference between us never existed. You could almost say we were the best of friends.

Becky has blonde hair and blue eyes, while I am more of a brunette with hazel eyes. Her favorite color is purple and mine is blue. At a glance, most people would never guess that the two of us are sisters. Our face shapes are even different, as well as our last names. Our mom had remarried which explains why her last name was different than mine. However, that never seemed to have made a dent with us loving each other.

Back then, the years seemed to never end, and even though they did, I’m glad the memories will never fade. The summer days were filled with playing Simon Says, freeze tag, going down to the river, and any other mischief we could think of while we were at our babysitter’s farm. When summer faded to fall, we would go all out for Halloween for trick or treating, and hit the best places every year. But nothing could beat winter. When there was snow on the ground, we would dress warm in a hurry, run outside, make snow angels, and compare to see who’s was better. Then we would go inside and drink hot chocolate, wrap ourselves in warm blankets and giggle while watching television. I wouldn’t trade those days for anything in the world.

When it was time for her to graduate from high school, I remember sitting in a metal chair watching her sit in front of everyone. I brought a notebook with me that night. I drew her a rose to say congratulations. I never ended up giving it to her though. But I was proud of her. She had everything going for her.

It was that summer when a wall began to form between us. I didn’t think it was because she was going to college, but had more to do with her boyfriend. Ed wasn’t like her previous boyfriends. There was something different about him. He changed her somehow. She start skipping her college classes and soon dropped out. From there, she had an argument with my dad and moved in with Ed. That was the last time I though I’d ever see her home again.

A couple months after living out on their own, they decided to move to Oklahoma. In Oklahoma, it felt like the wall had grew into a sky scraper. She planned on marrying Ed, but called the wedding off the night before. She found someone new, Nathan. I remember being so mad at her for hurting Ed the way she did, but she didn’t seem to care. She was in love with Nathan now. She hit an all time low when she was fired from Popeye’s. She was caught stealing a sandwich. My heart broke, my sister had no money or direction.

A few more months passed. My parents and I had to take a trip down to Oklahoma to help her move back to Alamosa. The drive was a long one, but I didn’t mind. Once in Oklahoma, we ate at a restaurant and then I rode in her car to her house. It was quiet and awkward. She was the one to break the silence, telling me she was pregnant. She made me promise not to tell our mom. I never said anything about, even after they got married.

Nine months later, I became an aunt. I was so excited about it. His name was Caden. He had bright red hair. Caden and I became close only because my sister and Nathan had money problems and had to move back home.

A year passed. They moved to Florida. I haven’t seen her since then. Now I’m a senior in high school. I have my whole life ahead of me, just like Becca did. I look back at her mistakes, and tell myself, time and time again, that I will never end up like her. So here I am, writing this essay about how people change and learn from one another, hoping that I turn out better than my sister did. I am going to have to push myself every single day, but I can do it. Even though we grew up as different people, she taught me so much in those years we hardly ever spoke. She is still my idol that I can never stop loving and will always look up to her, even if she never knows how much I care. Because of her, I will never cut myself short and will always achieve my dreams to the fullest with every opportunity I have.