My Eldest.

Bedtime was going poorly and 
I marched out of the yellow room,
 huffing and puffing as I
felt a heavy swell of frustration gathering in and around me,
bringing with it promises of an angry outburst at any moment..

But I walked back into the yellow room to find you
kneeling next to Ruby's bed.
Singing an original song to her, 
and gently caressing her head.
I stood silently; letting you finish
and knelt down to listen as you explained how
you wanted to say goodnight to 
both of your sisters,
so you crossed the room to give Nora the same special treatment
without praise or prompting.

and in that instant 
the swell of frustration transformed into a tsunami of love
for all three of you. Sisters. 
Caring for each other, always.
You see, I have wondered, deep down, 
on a number of occasions,
if maybe being the big sister to twins
is the worst thing ever.
But I see that it is not. 
and I feel thankful that they are teaching you at 4
lessons that I have spent 30 years learning myself.
and through your multiplied patience,
and your multiplied responsibility,
and your multiplied tender affection 
It is obvious that
for you
the surprise of being a 
big sister of multiples 
has been a tremendous gift.