My Sister

Dear Amazing Women!

If I am the sun, my sister must be Mercury—Mercury, if I am thinking of distance, but Venus is a better name for her. She calls me her inspiration. I call her my salvation because without her love and support, I would not have survived to become her inspiration.

My sister, who never had children of her own, devoted her life to children—female children. She had a long career as a teacher, coach, and athletic director. For thirty-three years, she fiercely protected her girls and helped them to grow and develop into self-directed, self-assured women.

Believing every girl should have an opportunity to play sports, she had a gift of being able to teach girls with all levels of ability how to work as a team. She taught them that by working together they could win games. It was pure joy to watch one of her teams play—win or lose.

One of the most important things to my sister is honesty. When she first started teaching, she was a smoker. One day, one of her students said to her, “You don’t smoke, do you, Miss Keegan?” Not wanting to admit to her student that she smoked, she answered, “No.” And because she is so honest, she never smoked another cigarette!

My sister has a zest for life and a sense of wonder that makes being with her a delight.

Visiting my sister is always a pleasure. Her home is filled with beautiful artwork, flowers and plants. Her table is set elegantly for the simplest meal. But the real pleasure of visiting my sister is my sister. She is fun, she is funny. We talk late into the night, and we laugh and we laugh and we laugh—until we cry.

Namaste,

Leslie