Remember When . . . .

Brother1 is only a year younger than me.  This was fun and yet frustrating to not completely have the FEAR OF THE OLDER SIBLING over him.  I was a constant source of amusement when it came to public humiliation.  Brother1 is what one would categorize as an "extrovert".   I am not.  Unless I happen to be at the moment . . .  don't judge me.

So back in the day we hung out quite a bit.  I was only one grade older than him and consequently we had many many friends gathered at the house at all times.  It was a riot.  The golden years (is this the correct term? Now I have "Golden Girls" in my head. . . .).  HOWEVER.  Brother1 was a class clown.  I was a prime target.  And he would only do such stunts in a place that I could not punch him.

Setting the scene:

High school cafeteria.

I'm leaving to dump my tray which also happens to be near the line to get food.  Brother1 YELLS from the other side of the cafeteria.  "HEY, BREAN!  When you go back for thirds, can you grab me a milk?"  Snicker. Snicker.  oh so funny . . hahaha.

Another fun one he would do:

Brother1 would be in front of me in the lunch line.  He would whisper with a wink to Wanda The Lunch Lady, who was powerless to his charm: "Hey, Wanda,  Brean really likes your mashed potatoes . . . load them on!"  By the time I arrive to get my plate of food, Wanda is smiling at me knowingly and LOADING up my little sectional tray with potatoes.  She grins and says: "I hear you really like my mashed potatoes."   I never could do anything to come back with that . . . I didn't want to hurt her feelings and say I don't really care for the mashed potatoes . . . and yet by being silent, I was inadvertently giving her full freedom to keep piling up the potatoes . . . without a doubt the entire line (or at least the person behind me) must have been amazed at my impressive appetite. I could feel their shocked stares. Later I would have to SNEAK to discard the potatoes I did not want in the first place so as not to disappoint Wanda. The agony.

So that was lunch time.

Probably the worst thing he did to embarrass me was in church.  In church! With God watching and everything! We attended a VERY SMALL church. 50 people would be a full house.  Prayer time was a free for all.  The pastor would just open it up for people to raise their hands and give prayer requests.  Brother1 raises his hand.  I looked at him. He had a slight smirk on his face.

Pastor Ian:  "Yes, Brother1?"

Brother1:  "I would like to pray for Sabrina's unspoken prayer request"

Me:  Looking up startled . . . WHAT THE H . . .

And there again . . . . I can't deny the unspoken prayer request . . . (a) maybe I did have one after-all - - hadn't actually thought about it; (b) I couldn't just state to the whole congregation that my brother was mocking prayer time; and (c) denial of needing prayer just seems  . . . . weird.

Is there a lesson in all of this?

I'm not certain.

But I now do have a love for mashed potatoes.  And if people want to pray for me . . . I give full permission.  Unspoken requests and all. :)

Brother1 is in the plaid pants.  Yes, I used to have short, blonde hair.