My brother is 9.5 years younger than me. Currently, he is a 12 year old boy that loves hanging out with other 12 year-olds, avoiding homework, playing x-box, and cheering on the NY Giants/ Detroit Lions.

The Monday night game this week is the first in Detroit since 1974. The Lions just scored a touchdown a few minutes ago and my brother came to knock on my door to see if I saw the play. I told him I had and that I was pumped. He then immediately closed my door and proceeded to knock on my Dad’s door.

My Dad wakes up at 6am every morning and is asleep by 10:15 every night. When I was 12 years old I would have never knocked on my Dad’s door at 10:50pm. There have been nights, even this year, that I wonder if my dad is still awake when I see the TV glowing from underneath his door. But I still don’t want to knock, I don’t want to disturb.

Every year my Mom bakes Christmas cookies that we deliver to the neighbors. When I was younger I dreaded delivering those cookies. The neighbors were always happy to see me, (who is bothered by a cookie delivery?) but it was just so awkward. Now my brother happily looks forward to delivering the cookies on Christmas Eve.

He also has one of those lame school fundraisers where you sale baked goods and tchochkes from a catalog in hopes of gaining a $5 prize. He has gone door to door to all of our neighbor acquaintances, and he has already sold over $50 worth of goodies. He is not ashamed or embarrassed at all, he wants to gain fund-raising money so he is perfectly fine with asking neighbors for help.

I always over thought everything. I would feel so awkward it would almost consume me! If I knocked on my sleeping father’s door at night, really what bad things could happen? My brother does not have this fear. He knows what he wants and if he might feel awkward or embarrassed on his path to achieving his goal it doesn’t matter because he wants to get things done. It took me years to gain the skills he has now. I am proud of him and I think this confidence will get him where he wants to go when he’s older.