03/03/2024
BROTHERS - #1
I was an only child until I was 7years old. My dad was an emotional closed door, but my mom did 1000 percent. When my brother, Kevin, was born premature, he was kept in the hospital, as they slowly worked to push his tear ducts back inside. He always needed glasses and apparently would become blind by his teens.
At first I was full of jealousy since this new family member took so much of the spotlight from me. As fortune would have it, my fiery Irish mother had enough energy to assuage my fears, allowing me to accept the intruder, even bonding with him. That was not quite so difficult, as I soon realized that I had a new role -that of the big brother. Not that it was so difficult, given that he adored me and was truly as close to an angel as any human can be. Kevin loved everyone, all the time and told them so at any opportunity. He even managed to crack our dad open a bit, which still left a lot to be desired.
As Kevin got older, I relished in doing all the various things that big brothers and even fathers do, sharing stickball and stoop ball ,
reading comics and some books. As I taught him various things and shared with him, so also, he taught me, much as my mom did,
how to love people and the world around us. He never once complained about his disability, nor the heavy glasses he needed in order to view the world around him.
The blessing bestowed upon us with Kevin's arrival ended when he was about to turn seven. He was playing outside, collecting small leaves and a neighbor had crossed him to the other side of the street. As he followed the trail of leaves off the curb and partly into the street, he was not aware of the car coming down the street and he was hit. Our angel left us that night, forever leaving a hole in all our lives. He was my brother, but belonged for a short time to us all.
Dennis Eamon Young
