For the last few years of my brother’s life, we were able to go to local coffee shops and spend time talking. In those hours we began to tell our tales and reflect upon our real life stories.
We were children of an alcoholic mother and an “at sea” naval officer father. Unfortunately for my brother, Ron, our mother’s drinking caused him irreversible brain damage at age three. Fortunately for me, Ron was 10 years older than me, and by then he had learned to make peanut butter sandwiches under the watchful eye of our Grandmother. After my first birthday, it was those very sandwiches which saved me from life-altering parental neglect.
My brother and I stayed connected through the years which truly was a miracle in and of itself. We developed a tremendous devotion to each other that offered us a deep reverence for life. It wasn’t an easy journey for us – but then many familial relationships are difficult. We were blessed by the grace of God, to find healing before Ron died.
I’m so grateful for our time together, so I dedicate this blog to the lessons I learned from my brother.
COFFEEHOUSE CONVERSATIONS 