Simone
When I was young, I had always wanted a baby sister, someone who loved me and understood me. My mother promised. She'd always regretted her own lack of sisters. "I'm going to make sure you aren't lonely when you grow up," she said.But she didn't keep her word. From the time I was three until I was ten, she did nothing but deliver baby brothers. I did my best to persuade my mother's uterus to grow a girl. I waved pink blankets and hair ribbons around my mother. Nothing worked.Finally, when she'd delivered her fifth son, my mother stopped making promises. "Paul, That's all," she declared to my father.The boys broke the quite order of our days and turned our home into a chaos of toys. "It's beyond me!" my mother screamed.However, having brothers wasn't all bad. Many people spend their lives thinking that the opposite sex comes from the opposite end of the solar system. I grew up on the same planet with men, knowing that their habits and hearts were different from - but very much complementary to - my own. Because my brothers are funny and competitive, l've laughed more than any ten women I know. I also tend to think strategically as well as emotionally. But it took me a long time to know the true blessing of brothers: sister-in-law!For many years now, my brothers' wives have provided the support I always dreamed of - choosing the oversize sweater for Christmas the year I put on weight, visiting frequently to cheer me up when I was in hospital, sharing their children as my own hope for motherhood became less and less likely.I can always appreciate the diets we've tried, the walks we've taken, the stories we've shared, the meals we've cooked and the babies we've shared. Both my brothers and my sisters-in-law have become the most important part of my life, showing me the blessing of belonging.当我小时候，一直想要个小妹妹，有人爱我，理解我。我的母亲答应了。她自己没有姐妹总觉得遗憾。 「我要确保你的成长不会孤单」，她说。 但她并没有守诺言。从我三岁到我十岁，除了生小弟弟之外，她什么也没生。我尽力说服我母亲的肚子生个女娃。我把粉红色毛毯和头发丝带在我母亲面见挥动，毫无用处。 最后，当她生第五个儿子的时候，妈妈不再承诺了。「保罗，够了！」她向我爸宣布。 男孩打破了我们的日子的秩序，把我们家变成玩具混战场。 「我受够了！」妈尖叫著说。 然而，有兄弟也不全是不好。很多人一生都以为异性来自太阳系的另一端。我从小就与男人活在同一个星球，知道他们的习惯和心思与我不同，可是很能互补。因为我的弟弟很有趣和出色，在我认识的十个女人当中，我笑了最多。我的思维倾向于既有战略性，又兼顾及感情。但我花了很长时间才明白有弟弟的真正福气：弟媳！ 多年以来，我弟弟们的妻子给了我一直梦寐以求的支持——那年我长胖了，给我在圣诞节挑加大号毛衣；当我躺在医院的时候，常来探望鼓励我；和我分享她们的孩子，因为我已没什么希望当妈了。 我总常欣赏我们试过的饮食、散步的路径、一同分享的故事、煮过的餐和一起分享带孩子（的乐趣）。我的弟弟们和弟媳们已成为了我生命中最重要的部分，向我展示归属感的祝福。
