He was a very sick baby. Heart problems, lung problems, stomach problems. He wasn't expected to live a year. His first year was full of hospitalizations. Yet he defied the odds. Until the fricking brain tumor.
We were not quite 2 years apart. We had a pretty normal childhood. I knew he was sick as a baby, scars on his chest and throat stayed the same size as he grew around them. I never knew how precarious that first year was. I knew that although we were treated normal- he wasn't pushed to be as active as other kids in sports. I never questioned why-I just knew it made mom nervous. But just about everything made her nervous. That's just how moms are.
He loved bananas. So I hated them. He wanted pineapple upside down cake for every birthday- pretty much it was all about the cherries. He loved cars. No one could ever tell the story better than my dad about our short stint playing pee wee baseball- Bobby used to smuggle hot wheels in his glove and would sit out in right field- forging paths in the dirt for his cars. I can't hear Peter, Paul and Mary's Right Field without ugly crying, or John Denver's For Baby, originally titled For Bobby. Fortunately neither song gets airplay and only randomly pops up on shuffle. Or days like today when I play it while Phil n the kids are at the movies.
We hung out with Melissa and Jason. Roughly our ages, I always envisioned he and Mel would eventually get married, making us real sisters. She was his first kiss- waiting for the bus, they were 5. That sealed the deal in my book. She and Jay message me every so often when they think of Bobby. Other than family, I often wonder who remembers. As much as it hurts that he is gone, hearing he is remembered is the gold that fills the broken cracks.
He had posters of Ferraris and Lambourghinis in his room when he got older. When I turned 16, we were gonna buy a Jeep together- I got to pick the color, it was going to be blue. He loved music- he introduced me to Europe and 2 Live Crew. Ironically we sat and listened to the Final Countdown on his walkman over and over in the hospital. Countdown to what, we had no idea at the time. Going home, feeling better, something. Mom played Pachelbel's Canon in D constantly as the countdown kept ticking, the tumor unrelenting. When Phil and I got married, it had to be Pachelbel- not because it was the trend, but because I had to attach happy to the song, it was already a part of me and I could not be debilitatingly sad every time I heard it.
The only time we were on the same team was when we were both against something. We fought a lot. In high school we rarely talked. He had his own set of friends, Jimmy and the other Bobby, he now was just Bob. They were into cars. We were happy forging our own ways. We still would decorate the bay window for Halloween- before everyone started "decorating" for Halloween- we'd start right after school so it would be lit up when mom and dad got home from work.
Our discussions consisted of don't tell mom and dad or else I'll tell them this. We were keepers of each other's secrets. The biggest one being when he was in a rollover car accident. It explained the headaches. We were in the same level math, I'd go ask for help- he'd yell at me to get lost. He was failing. It was a secret that wouldn't be kept for long.
I remember his hands. Phillip has his hands. He would have been tall. All torso like my dad. He would have been the best uncle. He would have been a great husband and an amazing dad. But he never got the chance. When my kids struggle with normal, I am constantly torn between being thankful for normal and can't we just skip the BS? I could sit around and be angry- lord knows there's enough anger and saddness- but that would be a disservice to him, to his memory. He and his death are a huge part of why I approach life the way I do. We are impermanent. We will be only memories to those who love us and they are also impermanent. But I cherish the memories. And we are what we pass on and we pass on pieces of those we love any way we can. I remember the way he laughed. sneaking around together early Christmas mornings, time outs in our rooms- sitting in the door jams whispering about how much trouble we were in.
I remember him every day, but days like today he is both closer and further away. The sadness heavier. When we were first trying to cope with losing him, my mom used to say- I had 15 more years with him than I thought I would. In that I saw her strength, but also the great sadness that never leaves, the nervousness made sense. I recognized this when I had my kids. Even more tangible when Lily was diagnosed. Then Phillip's diabetes. Every year when we scan them. But we are not permanent. We do our best to live as long as we can - the emphasis on living. We make the memories that others carry with them. We remember.
I miss him every day, but today a little more as we make pineapple upside down cake. Happy Birthday Bob.
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