Death in the Family Death is not always the enemy. Life that continues has the ability to change things that were not possible before. Premature death is a misfortune but it shows us that we are not immortal. I grew up in the small town of Monroe, Louisiana, and was the oldest of six children. We were always together and enjoyed each other's company, especially when it came to sports and competition. Our favorite sports were basketball and football, our parents even bought us our own basketball goal. When our parents gave us time to play outside, we played with neighbors and friends until the streetlights came on, signaling our curfew. Some of the fondest memories I have are with my brothers. I remember when I was fourteen my mother finally let me babysit on date night. I was so happy to babysit because I saw her as a real authority over my siblings and I could tell them what to do without arguing. I wanted to be in control, but I also wanted to be a nice babysitter, so I decided to host a handstand competition. The rules were that whoever could hold the longest handstand could eat chocolate chip cookies before bed, my brothers were thrilled. We each took turns doing a hand raise, but we fell faster than we got up. Then it was my brother Said's turn, he was the most athletic of the boys and the one I always wanted to beat in the race. He held his hand up for twenty seconds but when he stepped down his feet crashed into my mother's marble and glass coffee table, shattering the glass. He was unharmed but the table was ruined. When my parents got home, they didn't notice the table missing until my younger sister blurted out, "We broke the table, we were grounded for weeks. When we got older, my... middle of paper... " ..., cried and loved together. There were six of us and we remained united stronger than any bond, nothing could separate us. When someone was in trouble we worked together to make things better. As a child, I always wanted to be in charge and this was a way for me to really be in control, I wanted our family dynamics back. At his memorial I explained to everyone that this was not the end of our family, everything happens for a reason. God saw that we didn't appreciate each other and the bond we had before and he kind of took someone home with him that he knew was strong. Together we began to make an effort to visit each other at least once a month and to call each other more than once a week. Now let's plan like Sunday dinners and move on. We are learning that tomorrow is not always promised and we should cherish the love we have in that moment because it can easily be taken away.