DLers, do you have siblings?

My sister is about two years older. She works in child protective services and has had about a dozen miscarriages and one stillbirth and no successful deliveries. She has an autoimmune disease that hasn’t been fully explained. She’s married to a man with neurological disorders. They live in the suburbs near my dad and they currently have three dogs and a big lovely house with a swimming pool and a garden of which I am envious. They take three or four vacations a year, at least one of which is international. And they’re generally happy and enjoy their lives together despite all that.

I’m 41. I also have an autoimmune disease, different than my sister’s. I’m single and I live alone in a small city apartment. I paint and I write for personal interest, not as a career, and I’m imaginative with my head in the clouds and I like it that way. Despite that, I’ve got a pretty well-paying, respectable nonprofit job that I’ve had for 12 years and which is much less stressful than it used to be. Prior to that, I had one job for almost 11 years. I like my feet to be planted securely so that my head doesn’t float away with the clouds. I’m presently in the 88th percentile economically (just looked this up) and I suspect my sister is in a higher one because her husband is well paid. I’m a homebody and although I do occasionally get lonely(ish), I mostly want to be alone with my thoughts. I feel like at this point my life is pretty much what I expected.

We lost our mom two years ago and are a bit concerned about our father’s contentment and his long-term wellness. Otherwise, we both get emotional sometimes but are generally both fine. We weren’t raised to be competitive in a sense of acquisition of things and having high-powered positions that rake in money, and that has served us pretty well considering neither of us has those things.

My sister and I don’t see one another as often as we could but we are in regular contact, we meet at our father’s house at least once a month and for about 10 years we have taken a vacation together at least every other year. We are basically friends with the extra bond of being family, and so special to one another.

Only child!

Only child!

Only child!

Only child!

Only child!

Oh my god, I don't know why that posted multiple times!

Three siblings, all younger.

Only child, progeny of two only children.

I have a brother who is two years older. He is quite different from me in many respects (looks, personality, politics, religion, and he's straight). It has only been since both our parent died that we've been closer, though I prefer only being with him a few hours at a time. (I can only hold back my opinions for so long.) I'd rather keep the peace because I like having someone who shares good memories of our childhood, when life wasn't so complicated.

No siblings unfortunately(

r10, pretty much the same here.

My sister died at the age of two before I was born. I have many photos of her; she was a beautiful child, with pale blonde hair, and seemed to be tall for her age. I also have a large lock of her hair, carefully stored in a box. It really feels odd to take it out and touch it. She died of peritonitis from a ruptured appendix.

I have a sister, 4 yrs younger. We were very clised until she married 10 geara ago and divorced 2 years later. She married a bastard and did not forgive me for having seeing it.

Older brother, younger sister. We all lean left politically. My sister supported Bernie but was not insane about it. My brother and his wife have been very supportive of me and my lousy health.

I am glad both of my siblings lean left as well, R15.

Only child. I wish I had a sibling so that my mother would have another target for her crazy.

Three. I like them all. Very decent people I can always rely on. We are reserved and not overly affectionate - but I know if I need anything, they will be there. Could not get that form 90% of my friends,

I worked to maintain relationships with them after I moved away - and ensured I took my share of caring for elderly mother. I also helped them in their cancer battles. So you get what you give maybe. But we were also raised to be good, kind people who think of others first.

A sister, also a deplorable alky like OP, but she’s also a gambler. She stole $50k from me when my mother died. I sat & listened to her on the phone while her neighbor encouraged her to do because in rich (I’m not) and my husband is “a Jew.”

I no longer speak to her.

Btw, when her kids were growing up we were very good to them, taking them places, remener8ng their birthdays with cards f money. When my kid came along — zilch from my sister. Not even a birthday card. He only has two aunts & one sends him a card every year, so it’s not as if isn't. noticeable. I’m pretty sure my husband told him when he was younger “Don’t expect anything from Aunty Cheapy.”

One of my mother’s cousins was a drunk & a gambler. Borrowed my mother’s life savings & never paid her back. Just said, “I don’t have the money.” She also killed soneone. Her husband died & she had a drunk, abusive bf and she stabbed him to death one night. Lucky for her it only took one stab wound to kill him. She was pretty beat up, so she got away with it as self defense.

My sister hasn't murdered anyone....yet. But she takes after my mother’s cousin in every other way.

Youngest of six (!) siblings. Three boys, three girls, in a large Italian family. Get along with all, but a mixed bag in terms of how they have fared. Two are very successful, two are screw-ups -- one of my bros did a stint in juvey. They're all married with kids now, some college age now. I don't know how my parents managed with so many kids..

I am grateful to have multiple siblings - which is a rare occurrence now. Nice to be able to share the burden of parental care and develop different relationships with each - and bitch about the other ones😁

I am the middle child. Two older brothers and a younger brother and sister. My younger brother and I are both gay and in our early sixties. My oldest brother was in Vietnam and is a retired cop. He’s a recluse. My next oldest brother has been married 4 times and is a con artist but he has a large penis which accounts for his peripatetic marital record. My little sister is mentally ill. My brother and I are the most stable. We get along great.

One brother who is "on the spectrum" (undiagnosed Aspie) - we live 10 minutes apart, never contact each other.

Bump

Two siblings, older by 15 and 18 years so I was raised more akin to an only child. My parents were fairly old, thought they were done with parenting, and more relaxed with me than with my siblings. If I didn't want to eat my dinner, they didn't raise a fuss. They didn't raise a fuss about anything as long as I was quiet and well behaved.

I knew my brothers from my early years and family dinners and events, then later in life when I visited my family at college breaks or holidays. They were more distant to me than many people are to their cousins. Only much later in life did I get to know them on adult terms.

I'm the second of four sons. My older brother is 3 years older than I am. My youngest brother is 5 years younger. We get along fine. My younger brother is only 11 months younger and we've always been close. My mother says that it was like having twins with less than a year between us.

I have a half-sister from my father's first marriage. She's a Trump supporter married to a right wing douche bag. We don't have anything to do with each other. She's "against homosexuality"--the cunt's own words. My youngest brother is the only one of the four of us who spends time with her and only when her husband isn't around.

R26, are you the only gay brother?

Yes R27

I have an older brother and a younger sister. Neither of them have ever had an issue with me being gay, and they both get along well with my BF. I shared a room with my brother growing up so, even though we're very different, we've always been able to get along. He's not exactly intellectually gifted, but he's saved my life recently. He's driving me to a doctor's appointment tomorrow.

My relationship with my sister has been rather fraught for a long time, and especially after our parents died, when we stopped speaking to each other. Anyway, my brother let her know about some of my recent problems, and she's been checking in with me lately. It's a huge comfort to me, since I've never wanted an estrangement.

Ohh, they're touching upon the Bernie Red Scare topic now.

Wrong thread by a mile.

Two sisters, both older. They hated each other so I was always in the middle. One died and there was so much unresolved hostility between them that I still feel like I'm in the middle because the surviving sister always brings up the dead one when we talk. Sheesh.

Curious what is the thing that makes families stop talking to each other. My 2 brothers are married to women who at some point stopped talking to someone in their family. All over stupid stuff - like where someone would be buried, not getting a call, one getting more money. I get when there is major disagreement - like rejecting gayness, violent behavior. But so much of family disputes seem so petty. None of my 3 siblings or I would stop talking to one another for any reason I can think of.

Older brother; me; younger sister; baby brother.

We have different politics, but who cares in family.

We are also within 5 years from oldest to youngest, so we are really close and all talk several times weekly.

I was close to my grandmother, asking her why my dad was an only child in 1929. "We could never afford more children!"

Two younger sisters. We don’t see each other face to face often, but are close.

I'm the youngest of 5. We lost our parents when we were young. Mother when I was 9 and father when I was 19. Yet all 5 of us are successful and considered in the top 1-5%. And no, we did not get an inheritance. We all still keep in regular touch. Not the norm but we had a good foundation, short as it was.

I'm the third of four brothers. I love them to death. My oldest brother is gay like me. He is smart, generous, and so very warm. His husband is one of the sweetest people on earth. My second brother is very intelligent and a caring person. We don't see eye to eye all the time, but I value his judgment. His wife is like the sister I never had, and their children are just good kids (now in their mid-twenties). My younger brother and I shared a room growing up. We always made fun of the older two. Today, he's a great support. His wife is very kind, and she is one of the best readers of people I know.

Our parents are both dead now. My Mom's death is still a great loss for me. I don't know what I'd do without my brothers. I don't care to think about it. I've had my moments with all three, but I they are great guys.

That’s great R38. You are lucky. I have great siblings - but the wives of my 2 brothers are egocentric, petty, needy fraus . Ruins every holiday. Fortunately my sister’s husband is awesome. I will always love my siblings - but navigating the drama of the wives is getting old and I can’t imagine I will want to deal with them at holidays after my mother passes.

[quote] Curious what is the thing that makes families stop talking to each other.

When you see how some families interact (including some members of my family), maybe you'd understand. Sometimes, it's better to ignore each other.

I had two older sisters, a good one and a bad one. Of course, the good one died of cancer when I was 24 (she was 29) and I still miss her. She loved fashion and music, and had many gay friends. She did a year abroad in Europe and bought me a Fiorucci T and scarf shirt which I adored.

Bad sister was always judgmental and difficult. Became a federal prosecutor and became even more rigid and difficult. I haven't spoken to her in over 8 years, and it is for the better.

R41, is your bad sister Amy Klobuchar?