45 days and counting down

I've had this post in the back of my mind for about a month. Not what to write, just the fact that I needed to write something on this date in time -January 30th 2007. It's significant because it's 45 days before my birthday, which means that today I am the same age that my sister Bony M was when she got married. Weird. When she was my age she had gotten engaged, planned a wedding, and carried the whole thing out. Weird again.

Two of my sisters have gotten married, but Bony M was the first to do so, and is the third oldest child in our family. Having a sister get married is something momentous, mainly because of all the small things that change in addition to the large things. Silly little things like remembering that she has a new last name. As the whole thing went down I was kind of disbelieving - I knew Bony M was getting married, but somewhere in the back of my head I thought it wouldn't happen, thought that something, anything would cause the whole thing to get called off. I don't know why I thought this, except that I can't ever imagine things changing, and as a member of someone's family you're incapable of seeing them how everyone else in the world sees them.

I wasn't terribly involved in the whole affair - I just had to show up and wear new white shoes that pinched my feet. Perhaps most distressing was that she got married on a day that was inconvenient for me - June 21st -when a new Harry Potter was coming out. There was good watermelon at the reception, it being a summer wedding, but I kept getting pulled into pictures and only managed to eat a few bites of any given slice I was holding before I had to put it down again. Or I'd give it to someone to hold while the family was being photographed, and when I was done I'd never see the person again. I'd curse the jerk that made off with my melon and go to get a fresh slice. All this is nonsense of course. Who cares who took your watermelon when your sister is getting married? Well, at the time, I did.

Weirdest of all was meeting our new brothers-in-law. Both of my married sisters got engaged without us having met their husbands-to-be. I believe that this was for the best. We're a weird family. I'd keep me away from someone I was trying to impress too if it were possible. When Bony M's now husband came to meet us before the wedding we were running around like chickens with our heads cut off to get ready. When they arrived and started up the walk, M-Lite and I were in the front room. We panicked.

-What do we do?!
-Quick! Act casual!

And we plopped down on the sofa and tried to act nonchalant. We were going to do our best to seem normal. Same thing for when A got married - we wanted to make a good first impression. My sisters A and Bony M are some of the more normal kids in our family. It's not debatable, it's just a fact. M-Lite probably makes that list as well. So there you have it, the top three. I don't know where I fall on that list, being more than somewhat biased in the matter, but I'd like to think that I fall third to weirdest out of the eight of us.

I still marvel at how young Bony M was when she got married, even though I think it was meant to be. I take stock of myself as a person and realize that I have no idea who I am at this age, and I've lived a quarter of my life. Most people would say that at age 25, but how many people actually live to be 100 anyway?

I posted this because I like to make comparisons between myself and other people, because this date serves as a marker, making everything quantifiable. At this point in time this is where I am. And I think I'm good.

P.S. To Bony M - I hope I haven't said anything I oughtn't, and that you're not offended by my focusing on Harry Potter and watermelon rather than your reception.