Jan is the youngest of our family, 5 years younger than I. I don't remember ever fighting with Jan as we grew up, other than when we shared a bed and argued over whose sides was whose. Oh, and I did get exasperated with her when she sneezed over and over again in the mornings due to her allergies, which was very unkind of me. But we had a good relationship. I tried to be a decent sister. I helped her when we played Monopoly. With our age difference we didn't hang out together that much. I remember when I left for college she was sad. I think she put a picture of a tear on my bed. Very sweet.
A childhood memory of Jan that we all share is when she got spinal meningitis. I think she was 4. The rest of us kids were young, too, and didn't know exactly what was going on but we knew it was serious and all 3 of us (Dan, Joel and I) cried when Mom told us she was in the hospital. Thankfully she came through that and when she got home and someone was mean to her she'd remind us, "You cried when I went to the hospital." Makes me laugh.
Another cute family story of Jan is when she was really small. Dad would pretend he was going to bite her and she'd fight him off. At some point she must have told him he could bite her tomorrow and then, when he tried again another day, she said, "It's not tomorrow yet." We all thought that was very clever and funny.
As we became adults, and especially when she lived in San Jose for 10 years, we became good friends, and still are. There's no one I laugh with more.
As I said in my previous post, Jan and Joel are two of the smartest people I know. I think Jan's got some kind of photographic memory. She can quote books and movies verbatim. When I try, I usually mess the quote up and she's got it down. Handy to have around.
Jan's an introverted person, quite private. I feel honored that she can have heart-to-heart talks with me. I'm certain there are things she can't share with me but I am glad that she appears to have the same feeling I do about her -- that I can talk to her about things that I wouldn't talk to anyone else about, except maybe my daughter, who is another wonderful friend to me. I admire Jan's spirituality, too. She is a deep thinker and has a deep faith.
It seems like I should be able to write more about Jan because I love her so much. These are the basics of my feelings and thoughts. I'm sure more memories and stories will come to mind.
Don't forget to mention that I'm a delicate flower. As are you.
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