From avoiding to loving
The challenge to welcome my sister’s phone calls
In reflecting on how to live the gospel in an authentic way, I realized that I faced some challenges with “reaching out to the least,” in my own family. I’ve recently moved quite a distance from my family and try and keep in touch by phone on a regular basis. Many times our position in the family influences our closeness to our siblings.In my case, I have a twin sister whom I am very close to.
I call her frequently, and we share the news of our families, our children and all of the adventures and accomplishments of our grandchildren. We enjoy many wonderful conversations and moments together.
However, I also have another younger, single sister with whom I don’t share this same closeness. With her, I actually have many challenging moments due to her strong personality and opinions on many issues, including topics that come up in the family! I have even found myself calling and leaving messages when I know she is at work to avoid phone conversations. After thinking about my behavior, I realized that this tendency of mine to call the sister I prefer was not right. To love everyone, reaching out to the least — in this case my single sister — was something I needed to change. At different moments, she had also conveyed to me how lonely she sometimes was.
I felt that God was challenging me to welcome this sister’s calls with the same love I welcomed my twin sister’s calls! This new attitude of love toward my single sister has become an opportunity to discover her gifts and build a closer relationship with her. I actually look forward to her calls now. We still share many differences, but I have decided to concentrate on the positives. I have discovered the joy of getting to know her better, deepening the relationships in our family.
— J.C.