My Turn: Three siblings, together again, if only for a bit

I am one of three siblings, all with completely different lives, from two immigrant parents who met during World War II. My mother was born in Liverpool, England, and my father was born in Rostock, Germany. My mother brought home a nice German boy to Brooklyn while England was being bombed. But something had to be right: They were married for 70 years.

The three of us children – I’m the middle child – went on to live different lives in different states.

My sister, Lynn, won a scholarship from General Motors, went to MIT and got a doctorate in zoology; and from there, she decided to go to Washington State University to continue her education and fot another Doctorate, this time in ecology. She decided to stay in Washington, where she bought a house in Seattle. She became an environmental specialist for Seattle City Light, where she had accomplished much to help the environment.

I didn’t see much of Lynn for years, but we kept in touch with cards or letters. I was always proud of her – even though my mother thought I would feel that I wasn’t as good as her; my mother would say to me, “I want you to know that you have special abilities, too.” But I knew my sister as a fearless child who always looked out for us and took care of us when we were in a serious situation.

And I just wanted to live a what I called a “normal life,” getting married and having children – I was lucky enough to have two, a girl and boy. I wanted to write and dance; I didn’t want to travel like my siblings, and that was OK with me.

My brother, Billy, was and is a free spirit. He is a boat and auto mechanic who fixes yachts in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. His main occupation these days is spending three months of the year salmon fishing on his boat in Alaska. It had been 20 years since I had seen him, so I had begun nagging him that it was time we all got together.

The wonderful news is that in April my brother drove up from Florida and sister flew out from Seattle so we three could be together on Long Island for the first time in 20 years. We had a great time. My brother and his girlfriend stayed at our home; my sister and her husband stayed at the Hampton Inn in Huntington, with me bringing them back and forth to my house. My daughter-in-law and my son hosted a cookout, complete with burgers, grandkids and a fire in the firepit. My sister and her husband treated us to brunch at The Shed.

It was wonderful that we all were together again – and a little bittersweet because my brother needed to return to Florida to prepare for his next salmon fishing trip in Alaska. Still, I know my parents would be so happy and proud that we all kept in touch.

Barbara Chichester,

Huntington Station