The Jealousy of Siblings

Dear Delyara, The 'Fire' in my family was the competition between me and my brother. My parents played us against each other like it was a sport. Who had the better car? Who had the smarter kids? The 'Grind' of trying to win a game that had no end was making us enemies. We didn't speak for five years because of a 'Storm' over a holiday dinner. We reached our 'Crossroads' when our mother got sick. We had to stand in the same hospital room and realize that our 'victories' over each other meant nothing in the face of death. My Victoria was the moment I looked at him and apologized for being a rival instead of a brother. We stopped counting points. The victory is that we are finally a team, and the shadow of our parents' expectations has finally lifted.