Things are about to get sappier than a maple tree. Cheesier
than Wisconsin. Okay, I’ll stop. I apologize. That was cornier than an Orville
Redenbacher bag. UGH. Sorry.
You know how some people just don’t get along with their
siblings? Yeah, that’s not like me at all. My brother, Adam, is now sixteen
years old, but he has been the most important thing in my life since his
creation (the mechanics of which I like to ignore). It’s cliché, but I would
give up my life for him. He truly means the world to me.
When Adam was just a baby, I would help my mom give him
baths. After each bath, she would smell the top of his head. She always said
how much she loved the smell of his Johnson’s baby shampoo. Naturally, I would
follow suit and smell Adam’s bald little head, too. I remember bending over him
as he would lay on the bed, careful not to touch the soft spot on the top of
his skull, and breathe in the slightly sweet, powdery scent. As Adam got older,
his baldness turned into tufts of brunette hair, and still, I would race to him
after every bath to take in the familiar, light fragrance. Now, Adam washes his
hair with Axe shampoo. It’s that high school age, when Axe is considered gold.
I’ve never been a fan of Axe because it’s slightly musky, woodland smell is
slightly overpowering. But each time I visit home and Adam takes a shower, I still smell his hair. He's taller than be by almost an entire head. Instead of my bending over him, he bends down to me. But I don’t smell Adam’s Axe; he’s
my Johnson baby.
I've never been very good at defining a person's "scent," but I went ahead with it best as I could. I'm certainly no professional nose, but I can try.
I've never been very good at defining a person's "scent," but I went ahead with it best as I could. I'm certainly no professional nose, but I can try.
I didn't think there was a way to talk about smelling your brother's hair in a non-creepy way, but you have disproved that. This was very tender, I really enjoyed that. I like to read about familial love. It's funny how sometimes people who aren't very much younger than us always maintain that childlike image to us. I have a very good friend who is only one year younger than me, and I've always been in a kind of mentoring position with her (which does my ego so much good, I love it) and now she's in college, and it's still weird for me. I would hope, if I had a younger sibling, that I'd have a relationship with them like you have with your brother.
ReplyDeleteNice first line, Mish. Yeah, I agree.
DeleteSo, what can get added to this to make it fuller? Can there be dome dialogue? Can we get to know more about Adam?
DW
I seems near impossible to "correctly" describe a scent of someone (unless you're Ackerman) but I feel this was a perfect way to go about it. Your little brother used Johnson baby shampoo so he smelt Johnson baby shampoo-ish, right? Anyway, it was very endearing how you talked about how you smell Adam as your johnson baby and not the men from Axe commercials. I have an older sister and she treats me the same way. I liked the way you contrasted the different ages with the different shampoos. I thought the knock on axe was hilarious because it truly does seem like all sixteen year old boys think axe products will get them laid if used in large quantities.
ReplyDeleteI thought this was a really sweet piece. It seems that most people don't get along with their siblings, especially when they reach that high school age, but you have a really familial relationship. You use humor well as a kinda break from the sweetness so it doesn't become overpowering. Really good piece.
ReplyDeleteKey comment from Dave. So, Angela, you mentioned that this was going to be sappier than a maple tree, but a couple well-placed jokes help you earn that sappiness. Good.
DeleteDave
This was very nice and emotional without being "sappier than a maple tree." I'm always shocked to read about tender sibling relationships, considering the fact that I'm pretty sure my brother and I didn't even like each other that much until I was in high school and he in college. I think older sisters are probably a bit less competitive with their siblings than older brothers are.
ReplyDelete