Turns out – brothers fight. A lot.
Particularly when they have the same DNA. My identical twins have been getting into fights with each other a lot lately. When they were at home for a long time, it made sense. But now that they are with a few other children…
The problem is they seem to be strong magnets that just find each other wherever they are and come together. Even when they are tired of each other and I tell them to separate, an unseen force makes them move right back into each other’s circle.
So they fight.
A lot.
But they also love each other fiercely.
Yesterday in the car, the boys earned an ice cream treat for good behavior. While I was driving, I heard some scuffling with the treats. I looked in my rearview mirror and noticed the twins quietly exchanging ice creams back and forth. “Whatcha doing guys?” I asked.
“Sharing!” they said. You see, one had gotten chocolate sauce on top and one strawberry. They were quietly trading back and forth to make sure they got to fully experience each flavor. They continued to share down to the last slurpy drop.
Later that evening, they fell asleep head to head all cuddled up in their big comforters watching cartoons. The magnets finding their connection once again.
It’s moments like these that reminds me that disagreements and arguments between individuals do not need to irreparably divide them. We can both disagree and care for one another.
My prayer this morning is for a little of the brotherly love I witnessed yesterday to spill out into our society. May we be given the grace to disagree and still love one another fiercely. May we feel compelled to share with one another so that everyone gets to enjoy all the flavors of life. And maybe we be able to rest in the warmth of the light each person shines in this world.
