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A Driver's Manual For Sisterhood

After a long week at school, nothing feels better than dumping my backpack and books on the floor of my room and changing into comfortable clothes, excited for the evening to come. I hear the garage door open and the front door unlock, my dad coming home after work and my sister Sarah trailing behind him. I grab the keys and get behind the wheel, my sister jumping into the passenger seat as we get ready for our weekly sister bonding adventure. There is not one single space that has a significant meaning to me; rather, I cherish the places that Sarah and I visit together and the locations we will frequent in the future.

Before leaving the garage, we turn on our carefully curated playlist consisting only of songs we both know the lyrics to and clear our throats as we prepare to sing along. With volume over quality in mind, all of our problems seem to temporarily disappear as we poorly sing to our favorite tunes. We cruise down the highway as the stars begin to twinkle in the dark, somber sky as if they were diamonds when the light shines on them just right. A few cars whiz by us, but the mostly empty road brings a unique peacefulness along with it.




We finally reach our destination, wherever that may be; sometimes we visit our local Taco Bell to satisfy Sarah’s craving for a sugary Baja Blast and other times, we go to Target to smell candles, browse the clearance section and pick up a couple of grocery items.



Yet, the best moments are always shared over frozen yogurt. We walk into the store, grab a bowl and serve ourselves. Sarah has always been bold in trying the seasonal flavors but typically gravitating towards the chocolates and caramels and drowning it in hot fudge and popping strawberry balls among a variety of other toppings. I, on the other hand, stick to the reliable and classic plain tart with no toppings. Inevitably, Sarah shoots a jokingly judgemental look and reminds me of how boring I am. We sit down at the small round table and strike up a conversation, which usually begins with us complaining about how stressed we are about school. Frequently fluctuating between talking about projects, giving advice, angry rants, and everything in between, the conversation is never-ending. A few hours later, we realize how late it is, quickly snap a picture to remember the different places we adventure, and drive back, singing the whole way.



Sister bonding has been an opportunity for Sarah and I to be more independent from our parents and strengthen our relationship while we are physically together before we go our separate ways. By having this dedicated time to spend with each other, we are able to make new memories and explore the space around us.

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