My Sister--LAUREL

It seems fitting that I should feature my sister, Laurel, on a spring Sunday afternoon because of the memories I want to convey.
It was the spring of l959 and on a Sunday afternoon my parents, sister Donneta, and I were traveling down "Old Highway 40" as we were returning home from visiting friends in Junction City. We were in my folks l953 Ford and this was long before seat belts. I moved to the center of the back seat so I could position myself right between my folks. I conveyed to them that I knew that it "took a long time for a baby" so I wanted to put my order in ahead of time so that they would know what I wanted more than anything else in the world for Christmas l959. (I recall that they kind of looked at each other with that "parent kind" of look and smiled.) They tried to tell me that I probably needed new pajamas more since mine had holes in the feet, but I remained resolute that I wanted another sister.
A couple of months later my mom came out wearing maternity clothes and Donneta and I were overjoyed!! Our youngest sister, Laurel, named after our mother, was born on December 18 and she and Mom came home on Christmas Eve! My dream and wish came true! Our growing up years together were just a treasure. Laurel was almost 6 years younger than Donneta and almost 8 years younger than me. She was so loyal to every event and activity that we were in. No one was happier for us if our softball team or Bible Quiz team won and no one felt more disappointed when we lost. When Donneta and I were in high school Laurel was in grade school but she came to every event we were in. Due to her interest, I got a high school yearbook just for her. She spent so much time looking at it that when we would mention a student's name she could (by memory) list the pages his/her pictures were on.
During Laurel's high school years she became very skilled in photography. When I graduated from medical school, she took a day off school so that she could be in Lawrence to get pictures of the event. My most treasured photos of the event are due to her diligence and expertise.
Laurel has always been so LOYAL to all of us. Once, when we were trying to think of a password for an alarm systerm, my dad suggested (thinking of Laurel) that we use "Loyal McBoyle". Many years ago during a sad time in my life, Laurel called me with some very helpful insights. I've probably never thanked her enough for what that meant.
So on this spring Sunday of 2008, I think back with much fondness to my "childhood request of l959". I am so thankful that my parents "complied" with my Christmas request because my life has been so blessed and so enriched because I have a wonderful sister--LAUREL.