I grew up in a family dominated by females. I actually had no idea how to relate to my husband as a man - I am still learning, somedays it seems like an uphill battle and I often loose - shaking my head in wonder at the end of a day, baffled by this man I married and totally unsure of how to proceed. But I am slowly coming to understand what it means to live with a man, he is not a woman - he is The Other - and I am intrigued and completely in love with him. But sometimes, like when my sisters visit, I can just let the female wash over me and I can feel myself relax a little - this I understand, I understand the unspoken needs more than the spoken. I understand as I am understood. And with sisters its a double blessing because not only do we share in the feminine, but we also share the DNA, the background. We just understand some things about each other that outsiders can't. And there isn't a constant need to question. It is like taking a deep breath of air to not have to explain myself - to be with people who understand that the groceries go onto the belt in a certain order; who know that if your ice is floating, you need more ice in your glass; who don't condem me for my love affair with barbeque chips and pickles; who know that sometimes you just change your mind, and the thing that seemed so exciting this morning may not be the same this afternoon; who know that sometimes what you say may not really be what you mean; we share facial features and the fear of change but the longing for freedom. No one else in the world has lived such a similar life to my own, and I think that is amazing.

So, here's to sisters. Here's to my sisters, I'm so glad you're mine.