You never realize what you have until gone.
Last week I almost lost him. He came in barefooted, shirt torn up, scratches and bumps all over his face. I had never seen my little brother like this before. It was like what you see in the movies, except it wasn’t the least bit entertaining. I stood there just as shocked as everybody else in the room. My heart sunk and I wasn’t sure how to feel. All I kept thinking was that it could’ve been so much worse; he could have died.
I didn’t cry though because I was too paralyzed to move even an inch. It wasn’t until the next day when the tears fell involuntarily down my face as I realized the severity of the matter. Four dollars. That’s what a couple of teenage boys got from all of this. I kept thinking how stupid it was. I hope those criminals understand how pointless hurting an innocent sixteen year old was.
Me and my brother were never extremely close. I mean, I see him everyday and we’ve had some pretty good times together, but I never really thought about life without him. The truth is, life would be boring without the kid. His best and worst quality is the ability to be so carefree. I’m not sure if it’s simply because he’s the only boy surrounded by three sisters, but it’s a quality I both love and hate. He’s the funniest person ever when it’s the right time to laugh. Other times though, he’s just that annoying little brother I can’t get rid of. Many times when we fought as kids, I wished he’d just disappear. I wished I never had to deal with him ever again because he was just too much to bear. I regret it all now.
That day made me realize what a blessing siblings are. Love your siblings while you can. Friends are great, but no one knows you like your siblings do. I can tell my friends stories from my childhood all I want, by my brother and sisters are the ones who lived those memories with me. The bond between us is indescribable. We hate each other when we fight and I swear I’ll never talk to them again, but we’ll be completely normal that very same day.
High school went by pretty fast and college will be the same. After that, it wont be long until I’m married and officially living with another man. I can’t predict where I’ll live after that and how often I’ll get to see my family. No one knows what the future holds, so it’s best to live in the moment now.
Maybe what happened that day was for the better. It made us all appreciate the importance of family and it’s something I’ll never forget. That moment replays in my head all the time; the fact that a couple of teenagers thought it was okay to even touch my brother makes me sick to my stomach.
Teen violence is something that’s often overlooked. More and more schools are leading campaigns against bullying, but that’s not enough. Something else has to be done to stop the hate. Teen violence is more than just calling someone names online. It’s much more serious than that. I pray that those four boys realize it wasn’t worth it at all. Scarring my little brother for life wasn’t worth it. The blood and bruises weren’t worth it. Four dollars wasn’t worth it.