My brother is my hero

There are times when something so badly needs to be described on this blog that I find myself not writing about it because I want to do it justice. I want the significance of it to be captured. THis post is one such case. But lest the moment pass without me saying anything at all, I'm just going to spit it all out!

It's very simple really. Lucy loves Oliver.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, you say, of course she does.

But no I mean she really loves him. She adores him. Hell, she worships the little man! (She even brings him offerings!) In Lucy's world, the pecking order of whom to take notice is:
Lucy
Oliver
Mummy
Daddy
Anyone with chocolate.

OK, anyone with chocolate probably comes top of the list but you start to get the picture.

You see, whatever Oliver does, Lucy will do. In fact she feels compelled to do. Many times recently I have said to her "if he jumped in the river you would too, wouldn't you!"

This mimicry is a double edged sword. When Oliver is good, so is Lucy. And when Oliver is naughty, Lucy is naughty too. She copies his behaviour, his words, his choice of food, his choice of toy, his choice of clothing, everything!

Here are a few examples I came across in pictures to show you what I mean.

"Oliver's on the rocking horse? So am I!"


"Let's cuddle teddies together."


"Is there room for me too Oliver?"


"Dressing up time. Yay!"


"Oliver's eating outside in the playhouse? So am I!"


"Oliver's playing in the garden, so I'll hang out here too."


"I'm not sure why we're sitting in the garden in the cold, looking up at the sky, but if it's good enough for you Oliver..."


"Great idea, let's get into your bed and hide!"


"Let me give you a cuddle while I watch how to clean my teeth."


"My brother Oliver loves apples. I tend to eat a tiny bit, spit out the skin and then hand it back to Daddy, but if Oliver is having one, so am I."


"I like to read with my brother (after making a zillion hand-prints on the TV!)."


"But to be honest, I don't care what my brother does. It's just nice hanging out with him."


And perhaps what is nicest about this is that Oliver loves Lucy too. He can be incredibly kind and thoughtful towards her (even though she can steal his toys and wind him up terribly sometimes). Perhaps that is a big part of why she adores him.

In short, it is beautiful to see how well they get on right now. I know it won't last, at least not like this, but I'd like to think some remnant of it will linger on that will bind them together.