True love

“The course of true love never did run smooth.”

William Shakespeare

This morning Pip said to her dad, “I love my sister so much.  I just couldn’t wait for her to come out of my Mama’s belly,” and last night in the tub the girls smothered each other with hugs and kisses.  That was just one day after Pip asked me if Fig could go and live on Saltspring Island, and two days after she yelled, “Mama, PUT HER DOWN, I want you all to myself!”

Pip has a pair of tap shoes that she likes to wear, and one afternoon I heard her run down the hall after her sister: tap, tap, tap, and then I heard a huge cry emerge from Fig.

“Pip, what happened?” I asked, as neutrally as possible.

“She did it to herself, Mama.”

“She did what to herself?” I asked.

“She just reached around and pinched herself on the back!”  (Don’t you love it?)

A conversation about truth-telling ensued and Pip came clean about pinching her sister.  She was congratulated for being honest, but she was issued a ‘time-out’ for inflicting bodily harm.  Pip grudgingly went over to the time-out mat and sat down with a slight scowl.

Not five seconds had passed before Fig went over to the time-out mat and sat on it with her big sister.  Pip started to giggle.

What a beautiful, complex, loving, unloving  little relationship these two people are creating.  I have siblings, but my sister is five years my junior and my brother is seven years younger.  I was more like a third parent to my brother and sister than a rival.  I’ve never really experienced the relationship dynamic that my daughters are developing, and I find it fascinating.

One thing seems to be pretty consistent though; love is met with love.  Pip usually captains that ship, but when she showers her little sister with the good stuff, Fig literally glows.  Her face changes.

We were sitting outside on the hammock together, Pip and I, and Fig was playing with the sprinkler a few metres away from us.  She came running toward the hammock with her arms extended in anticipation of a hug, so I held my arms out to her saying, “Hug?”

“Sissy,” she said, and flew into the waiting arms of her sister.