THREE SIBLINGS

THREE SIBLINGS

Always together

For a while, they were inseparable. Siblings, teammates, playmates, best friends. Whatever was done, they did it together.

Stevie was the oldest and the only boy. Sharon was next, and then in turn, Susan.

There was a span of two years between each sibling and yes, their mother had a thing for the letter “S”.

Sylvia Saunders had married Seth Smythe and never failed to tell anyone who’d listen that their marriage was blessed. “After all, when you put the two esses together and twist one just so, they would form an infinity symbol.”

Again, yes, Sylvia was a bit on the superstitious side. Her superstition even went as far as the streets where they lived. When Sylvia and Seth first married (yes, in September), they lived on Sutton Street. After their children were born, they moved to Spring Street but no matter where they decided to live, they would never leave their home in Springfield.

Sylvia never doubted that the letter “S” brought her luck. While Seth never argued with her little idiosyncrasy, her children thought she was just plain weird.

“Come on, mom!” she often heard them chide. “What’s in a name, anyway! When I grow up and get married, none of my kids will have names that begin with an S!”

“Mark my words, children, that’s just looking for trouble.”

They’d shake their heads and walk away.

Once the siblings began entering their teenage years, their personalities began to change. Stevie began participating in more sports geared only for boys. Sharon began noticing boys, and Susan joined a girls’ camping club. The trio was splitting up and while her children never gave their new lives a second thought, Sylvia was concerned.

“They were always so close. They’re still close but they’re going in different directions. What’s going to happen to my family?”

Her husband answered her concerns, “Silvie, honey, kids will grow up and follow their own paths. Trust me, we’ll be fine. All of us!”

Steve, which he now wanted to be called, joined the Navy on his eighteenth birthday. Seth was so proud but while Sylvia tried her best to be as proud, she cried with the knowledge that her son was no longer a little boy and therefore, he’d be leaving home.

The girls expressed an interest in college. How Sylvia’s eyes shown with pride – until Sharon announced that she’d be applying to a college in the Midwest. She wanted to specialize in agriculture. Susan wanted to move to New York. “Mom, where better can I study fashion design?”

Her children could not have chosen such different paths. Yet, she knew in her heart, as a mother, she should not and would not hold them back.

In turn, she watched each graduate high school.

She witnessed Steve take his oath to serve and protect the United States, then board the bus for the shipyard.

Her smiles and hugs were many as Sharon stood with her diploma above her head, smiling from ear to ear.

Next was Susan, who all but skipped onto the stage to accept her diploma.

A few years later, on the twenty-fifth anniversary of their wedding, Sylvia heard her doorbell ring. She dried her hands on the dish cloth she had slung around her shoulder and turned off the tap where she’d been washing the breakfast dishes she and Seth used. They walked to the door together.

Opening the door, with a shocked look on their faces, they stared at six young adults.

It was Steve that spoke first. “Mom, Dad. Happy Anniversary. We all managed to get the same time off to spend a week celebrating with you. I know this is a shock but, we’ve another shock for you.”

Each child took their turn. Steve, again, spoke first, “Mom, this is Anita. We’re planning on a wedding for June of next year. That should give you almost two years to help plan.”

Sharon spoke next, Mom, Dad, this is Aaron. While we’re not engaged yet, he has proposed, and I accepted. And no, we haven’t yet set a date.”

Susan waited her turn, then held up her left hand and wriggled her fingers. “Mom, Dad, this is Andy. He proposed last night and, well, as you can see, I said yes. We’re thinking of a wedding sometime within the next two years. There are so many things we want to accomplish yet, and don’t plan on rushing things.”

Steve spoke again, “Mom, Dad, looks like we have a lot of celebrating to do.”

Seth didn’t think his smile could be any wider. Sylvia cried but this time, they were happy tears. “Oh my God! Will you look at all of you. Come in! Come in!”

As they sat around the kitchen table, trying not to talk over each other, it was Sharon who spoke. “Mom, Dad, we know you’re probably wondering how we managed to organize our engagements to take place around the same time. After all these years, you should know us well enough to know that wherever life takes us, we’ll always do things together.”

Susan, naturally had to say something, so she added, “After all, we are the Trio!”

Sylvia had one question. “Why the A’s?”

Sharon answered, “Mom, when we left home to begin our new lives, we kept in touch and decided when the time came, if at all possible, we’d being our new lives from the start. And that start begins with “A”.