Hookers, booze, shooting holes in the ceiling..Part 4 of 6

To my oldest sister Danielle

This will be the most difficult blog eulogy-esque tribute.

 I know you hate this kind of crap, but, oh well.

 You are getting a tribute anyway, fear monger!

If you had asked me, before this life, who I would chose as a best friend, I would probably have said " a really handsome gay man, who is funny, sensitive, and may one day be the father of my child".

However, no one asked me, so I got two older sisters as best friends.

Which, while not as cool as the gay guy scenario, has been a pretty good runner up.

Danielle is my Moses.

I have told her this several times, but I doubt she really gets it.

 She has always been my example in everything and led me to my own promised lands- Chicago, my mission field, Idaho-for undergrad, Philadelphia-for graduate school, and last but not least, Europe-you saved my money and made me believe it was possible.

Because of YOU, I know what Rome looks like at sunset.

Because of YOU, I have my Masters degree

. Because of YOU, hundreds of people in Chicago learned more about the gospel and I know of at least one of my mission families that went to the Temple together.

If I didn't have you as a sister, I know I would still be working at the Redners Warehouse Market in Quakertown, living with Mom and Dad, spending my paycheck on swiss cake roles for my breaks. 

Danielle was the first girl in our branch to serve a mission and since her there have been like 9 or 10..in a small branch.

Danielle was the first sister missionary in all of our extended family on both sides.

She was the first person in our family to graduate college.

Beyond that, Danielle makes me laugh.

We have exactly the same kind of sense of humor and all it takes is one word or one line of movie dialogue to make us both laugh.

I could say " I'm in a mood" and she would immediately reply "A real bad mood, I got fired from my ice cream truck job today" :)

Danielle, over the last several years, has been an example to me of what kind of a mother I would want to be.

She is patience and kindness personified.

If they were going to make a made for TV movie about her life, I think she would be played by Julia Stiles.

Thanks for everything, beast!

Lori Ann