It Sucks Getting Old

I grew up with 3 brothers, I was the only girl. Lucky me.
One was 9 years older, one was 6 years older and the 3rd one was 9 years younger than me.

When I was little, I was spoiled rotten by the two older brothers, but as I got older that changed.
My oldest brother always stuck up for me, but the next to the oldest and I were rivals and fought all the time, but as we got older we became very close.

When I think back on them, I think of what they had to go through having me around. If they wanted to go to the movies, ( and back then the movies was the thing to do as a kid), with their friends they had to drag me along, lucky them.

Dragging me everywhere with them wasn't so bad until we all got a little older, and they discovered girls. It worked for me, (while at the movies), they would sit me in the very last row, with all kinds of candy, then they would go down to the front row where they always managed to find some girls to sit with. I was a good sister and never ratted on them, and it paid off for me, when I was older and discovered boys, they gave me the same quiet respect, even though they managed to scare off any guy I dated.

By the time the youngest brother came along, the oldest one was off in the Navy, and stayed in for 30 years, so he was out of the picture, pretty much the rest of his life.

He was Navy all the way. When he retired, after his 30 years, he still worked on base. Shortly after he retired from his base work, and finally decided to settle down in a comfortable life, he died. It was the asbestos, that caused it. For years he was a Boiler man 1st class and when he died, the Government finally came out with the dangers of working where there was asbestos. Now it is common knowledge.

My next to the oldest brother wanted to follow in the older ones footsteps and go Navy also, but that was a real disaster. He got seasick, but he got homesick even worse, so he was AWOL a lot. I think back and remember, he was home more than he was ever at sea.(chuckle).

He finished his life happily in hospital security. It took him a long time to find his life's desires, but that is where it was. Years had gone by since I saw him, and now he is gone also. He died this last summer. Of all of us, he had a bad heart, and he also ended up getting cancer. He had his last treatment, and was cleared to go back to work, but his heart wouldn't let him and it gave out.

My youngest brother and I raised our families, and we live close by. We are the last two left.

It really sucks getting old.