Tag Archives: siblings
My Sisters, Alongside Me
When my O.C.D. emerged in third grade, my two older sisters suffered alongside me. We shared a bedroom at our home near Milan. Every night, they waited as I turned the light on and off 38 times. When we drove, … Continue reading
Beautiful Laundry
I owned a small laundromat called “The Laundromat” on Fire Island. Carol walked in with musty sheets and towels from her share house. I quoted her $48.50 (this was in 1976). “I’m from the Bronx,” she said. “I don’t pay … Continue reading
More than 30 Minutes Together
Windows down, music blasting as we drive over the mountains that divide the Sonoma and Napa valleys. My sister and I have memorized these mountains, as we’ve been making this commute between our two homes for 12 years. Through every … Continue reading
Forever Intertwined
My first friends were my cousins and siblings. After eating early family dinners, we spent many Sunday evenings sprawled across our grandparents’ bed. We lay sated, entranced by the television, our limbs crossing limbs, our heads lying on each other’s … Continue reading
Healing Family Wounds
Fifty years ago, our mothers’ bitter estrangement divided us daughters. But after I expressed sympathy over her mother’s death, my cousin mailed me a sprig of an aloe vera plant as a peace offering. Our shared great-grandmother had carried the … Continue reading
