Rerun: Brotherly Love

If there’s one universally recognized sign of those with brothers it’s instances of brotherly love. There are varying definition for what this phrase means when it comes to literally talking about brothers, but what Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart so succinctly said in reference to obscenity applies here: you'll know it when you see it.

Sometimes brotherly love is sweet. The four-year-old and I were going on a camping trip and the three year-old had been given the option to come along too -- as long as he was no longer in diapers. The four-year-old wanted his brother to come on the trip so badly, he would encourage him to practice sitting on the potty and would even offer to sit with him while he tried to go. 

A lot of times brotherly love is sweet and sour at the same time. Take this conversation I had with the four-year-old when his brother was nearby:

Four-Year-Old: The thing I like best is being with my brother. 

Me: That’s nice, do you tell him that?

Four-Year-Old: No. No, he doesn't know that. [turns to three-year-old] Go away!

And then, of course, there’s the other side of “brotherly love”.

To wit; the four-year-old and three-year-old walked to the mailbox with me and decided to race back to the front door. The three-year-old miraculously got a jump on his older brother and beat him to the door. He then turned to his slow-poke brother, and triumphantly pointing at him declared, “You’re not a brother, you’re a baby!” Then, still high on the thrill of his unlikely victory, the three-year-old burst through the front door and immediately stiff-armed (Heisman style) the one-year-old in the face knocking him onto the carpet. 

Before realizing he was going to be disciplined, the three-year-old had the sparkle of invincibility in his eyes. Not only had he bested his older brother, he had tied it into putting down his younger brother. In brother behavior, he might as well have conked their heads together Three Stooges style.

Or there was the time the older two were making a ruckus after being put to bed and I went in to lay down the law. As soon as I entered the room, the four-year-old ratted out three-year-old for possessing contraband (a toy car under his pillow), and the three-year-old return fire stating his older brother was hiding a book on the back side of his bed and he even offered to show me (the dim-witted dad apparently) exactly where it was. Every man for himself in the dog-eat-dog world of bunking with your brother. 

However, even though the less charitable instances of brotherly love are funnier, they’re also outweighed by the truly touching gestures between brothers. Like the time the three-year-old, full of concern and seriousness, half picked up the one-year-old and dragged him away from the fireplace because he thought it was hot (it wasn’t) and the baby was in danger of getting burned. Or when the four-year-old walked the then two-year-old to his first Sunday School class and showed him the ropes. 

Those are the moments that overshadow “brotherly love.” Those are the moments that love between brothers is built on.