Sibling Days

In the midst of a late night shoot, I peeked at my Facebook, only to discover that today (well, yesterday by that point) had been National Sibling Day. Who knew there even was such a thing, yet how grateful I was, having worked all day, to be presented with a new and different topic for the daily post.
 
As unemployment slash freelancing was isolating, working long hours can also be isolating. While the collaboration with cast and crew invigorates me, the days leave me with little time or energy even to think about my siblings, much less talk to them, so how great to have a moment in time (or, in this case, a moment in a late night car service) to reflect on how my brothers have influenced this last year in my life. For, while they are night and day different from each other, they have each contributed to my current sanity after a year of rockiness.
 
When I was home, one of my brothers called me every few days, mid-morning, when he just seemed to know that I'd be alone staring at unproductive leads on the computer. We might talk about the job search. We might talk about my kids or his travel or nothing much at all, but he provided a much-needed lifeline and sounding board throughout days that were otherwise much too quiet. My other brother, less of a talker, more of a pragmatist, was my reality check, my reminder that a new job didn't need to be a forever job, and that my skills, though perhaps less than understood, were valuable and marketable.
 
So today, on (the day after) National Sibling Day, I celebrate my siblings. If you are lucky, your siblings remind you that you are not alone, that there is someone on your side even if not at your side. I am lucky that way, and if I've done the job as a parent that I've tried to, my kids will be lucky that way too.
 
Happy Day After National Sibling Day.