The man pictured above is Nick. If you don’t know who Nick is, let me give you a few words that describe him best. Nick is the most amazing person in the whole entire world. That sums it up pretty accurately, if I do say so myself. In all seriousness, Nick is my brother. So, in honor of his birthday, let me tell you a little more about him.
From the moment Nick and I laid eyes on each other, we were obsessed.
Example A:
Example B:
Anyway, let me break this down for you more. When I was 18 months old, I was adopted. Nick was 8 years old when I came into the family. Before my adoption, my parents asked Nick if he wanted a little sister or a little brother. They figured it was best to let Nick have some say in the adoption of his future sibling. Nick responded with a confident, “I want a little sister to love and protect.” If that doesn’t describe our relationship, then I don’t know what will. So, Nick’s wish was granted in November 2000 and on his 8th birthday, he met his little sister for the very first time. To this day, my mom never fails to share how Nick exclaimed that I was “the best birthday gift he had ever received.”
From that moment on, we were inseparable. We even did competitive figure skating together. He was the best skating partner ever! When we were younger I, of course, was the pesky little sister and he was the forgiving big brother. Even when I went into his room to take everything out of his dresser at four years old, he still loved me. When I was 6 or 7 years old, I wrote, “I hat Nick” (which meant to say “I hate Nick”) on my walls; it made him cry, but he still loved me. Despite the numerous amount of times I’ve somehow injured him, whether that be by accidentally kicking him in the face or hitting him with a broomstick, he still loved me. To this day, I still don’t understand how a person could love someone who has tortured them all their life. I now realize, 10+ years later, that it’s because of the kind of person Nick is: he is loving, understanding and forgiving, to say the least. And because of his caring nature, we got along extremely well. Seriously, we have never fought our entire lives.
If you think a person could get any better, you’re wrong. With Nick, you get the whole package. Not only is he considerate and caring, but he is incredibly smart. Nick went to St. Olaf College where he majored in History and Political Science and minored in Middle Eastern Studies. He spent his college life studying and volunteering for anything he could get his hands on. He was also the Vice President of the Student Government Association (SGA). He was also involved in Theatre during his time there, and he continually succeeded academically on top of all the extracurriculars he dedicated time to outside of his studies. Because of his work ethic, he graduated with cum laude in 2015.
After graduating from college, he proposed to his high school sweetheart, Katlyn. Aren’t they cute? Shortly after their engagement, they both made the big move to Washington D.C. so Katlyn could attend physician assistant school. Because Nick and Katlyn had been together since I was 8 years old, I also grew up with Katlyn. She was pretty much like my big sister. When I heard the news that they were moving, my heart broke into what felt like a million pieces. Sure, I was really happy and excited for the next chapter in their lives, but when they moved away, I felt like a piece of me went missing. I never knew how much I took having a brother like Nick for granted until I was faced with the fact that he would be exactly 1,077 miles away from me every day for the next two years.
After the dreadful two years were up, I finally got my best friend back (in Minnesota at least). Now it’s Nick’s turn to complete, you guessed it, more school. Nick is now working on getting his Masters in Public Policy at the Hubert Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota. I know, what a nerd, right?
By now, you’ve probably figured out that I am writing about my brother for a certain reason. Well, November 9th marks his 26th birthday! Nick, this is your birthday gift. JUST KIDDING (but also, I’m kind of serious). In all “realness,” I wanted to honor my brother and the amazing person he his. He has made a lasting impact on thousands of people in only 26 years of life, and I think that is crazy. So here’s to Nick. Thanks for being the incredible person you are and for putting up with me all your life. Thank you for constantly inspiring me to be a better person. Happy birthday to my “old fart,” “nerd,” “homeslice,” “dawg,” “cutie” and whatever other random nicknames I have for you. I hope you have an amazing day with friends and family. You deserve it. Happy birthday to my best friend! Love you <3
PS: You didn’t think I’d forget about your annual birthday collage did you?