Apple of my Eye

To say that I was emotionally underprepared to say goodbye to my little sister as she left for college would be an understatement. Although I knew I would have to say goodbye eventually, I thought that it would just feel like she was going on a little vacation and would be back soon. 

Instead, it was a roller coaster of emotions for me. On one hand, I was so excited for her to experience college life at her dream school, UCLA. On the other hand, I was (selfishly) dreading not having her be 20 minutes away from me every day. And when the day finally came where she left, it was so hard to keep it together.

I guess you could say my little sister has been the 'apple of my eye' since I was 9 years old.  A 9 year age gap meant that I was more like her second mom than the typical sibling. I pushed her around in my baby stroller, gave her baths every night, played school with her (I was the teacher, she was the student). She would also fall asleep in my bed with me every night when she was a kid. I've watched her grow from a tiny infant, to a rambunctious toddler, to a sporty kid, to a hardworking teenager, and now to a beautiful young woman. 

Seeing someone that you love grow up and start making their own decisions makes you feel so proud of them. My heart swells with pride and love every time I think of my little sister. Since she's been away, we've FaceTimed almost every single day, which has made it easier, but I still miss her like crazy. 

I slept over at my parent's house the night before she left so that I could see her off in the morning. As she drove away with my parents in the car, it felt like a little piece of my heart was driving away too. I went for a long run afterwards to fight off the tears, but the waterworks came right when I got back!

I've always told my little sister that the day she was born was one of the best days of my life, and it always will be. Now, as she lives the UCLA life that she worked so hard to have, I am so excited to ride along on this journey with her, as her big sister, second mom, and lifelong cheerleader.