Chmok and Pebbles, Back at it Again

Thursday’s Thought

Well I’m on a plane. And there are no snakes. Ha. Terrible joke, I know. My time is all wonky … my body feels like it’s midnight, but the flight attendant just served me coffee and wished me a good morning in German, so I really don’t know what’s going on.

I’m about an hour outside of landing in Germany to spend the holiday with Efed. I’m beyond pumped to spend time with her, and even more excited that we to see each other on Thanksgiving. I don’t remember the last time this happened.

I know that I might be missing a serious opportunity, what with it being Thursday and all to write about the folks and things for which I’m grateful … but I feel like that’s so overplayed, trite, and there are likely going to be a million blog posts throughout the country about that very thing. Besides, early this year, I devoted an entire month to gratitude and I think I do a reasonable job of writing about being thankful and aware of my blessings pretty frequently.

Instead, I’d like to write about this trip.

For the next few days, I’ll be logging posts from the Fatherland while Efed and I explore Christmas markets, a questionable hip-hop club, various museums and little shops, and the area surrounding her flat. Even more than the geographical exploration, we’re going to explore what it means to be adult friends and adult siblings.

My older sister and I have spent our fair share of time fighting. There have been epic battles in a few different cities in the world, and while they’ve been gruesome and sometimes bloody, they’ve always helped us grow closer. On the way to Stonehenge one year, Efed and I made a vow to stop coming at one another sideways … and now, three years later, I am happy to report that we’re doing a pretty good job. There are still moments that I want little more than to wring her neck – either because she’s saying something too real and I can’t process, or because she’s being an older sister and I can’t process. Point is, each time we come together, we find a way to see one another in a new light, to appreciate our quirks in a different way, and ultimately to learn to love each other a bit more. She might still roll her suitcase down the street one day, and I might eat Grippos while I’m tired, but we’ll do those things from a different place.