Siblings Day, April 10, 2024
Each year on April 10th, National Siblings Day, we celebrate the very special bond of support, friendship and love shared between siblings. Sibling bonds are often life-long relationships. Whether they grow old and gray together or are sadly separated by illness or death, they are tied together by something difficult to explain. They are knitted together; entwined by love and shared experiences. Siblings are our first friends, our competitors and teammates, our roommates and sometimes wombmates. Having a sibling is being a part of something bigger than yourself and never having to face something alone.
At Friends of Karen, the sibling relationship is one especially close to our hearts. The Sibling Support Specialists at Friends of Karen, are dedicated Child Life Specialists and Art Therapists who provide emotional support and illness education to the ill child and their siblings. While working with the Friends of Karen children, we see firsthand the layered, multifaceted connection. We see fierce loyalty and protectiveness. We see the compassion, jealousy, the inside jokes and teasing, the joy and giggles. As Sibling Support Specialists, this is a favorite part of our job; watching the impromptu dance parties, turning the living room into wrestlemania, sharing a cookie or a joke. These are treasures that look like ordinary life. There are also extraordinary moments of compassion, support and if we are lucky, tremendous growth.
We also see how intensely the siblings are affected by the illness of their brother or sister. The diagnosis of a life threatening disease can send shockwaves throughout the family. Despite the very best efforts of their parents, so much focus and attention is paid to the ill children that often the siblings feel ignored, not special, unimportant and unseen. These children endure so much for those so young, yet they are forever inspiring us with their capacity for love. Happy Siblings Day.
