I am sitting here wracking my brain thinking of memories for my little sister’s birthday.

April 28th, 1984…..I was already making concious memories by now….I can’t remember whether Che was born before or after the tornado that hit the daycare center me and Radiance used to attend….but I was 4 going on 5 in a month….

I was going around telling people at church that my mommy was going to have a little boy….I remember dad waking me and Nina up and taking us EARLY in the morning to Aunt Lynette’s house….

Che was a quiet and curious baby….she’s gonna kill me for sharing a few of these memories….but she used to mess around with the ashes in the fire place….she was always into something, but never making much of a stir….

She was a talker at times though….the family used to make a circle with her in the middle and marvel as she’d walk over to each of us and talk some baby talk to us….her nickname was “Bossy Talkie” because it seemed like she would be giving us some type of order as she talked to us….bossing us around….

She used to cry when my parents first got divorced and it’d be time for my dad to leave….after that episode of our lives I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve seen her cry….she’s a warrior…although a bit accident prone

I can remember when she fell down the stairs to the basement and broke her leg….the doctor said it was a “greenstick” fracture….I am JUST now understanding that she basically caused a break in the cartilage….Che doesn’t remember it at all….I do though….I remember her barely able to cry….she has never really been one to cry much….with a few exceptions…

She fell off the couch one day and busted her eyebrow….she didn’t make a sound….she had to get stitches that day….mom says she barely made a peep….she’s a soldier

She fell and scrapped her face at my godsister’s house one day….my dad was devestated, his baby would have a scar on her face for life….her face is FLAWLESS now….you can’t tell….she’s a healer

As she grew up, we started to see that she was gifted….more gifted than any of us could imagine….she hopped in my mom’s bed around the age of 2 or 3 and just started to read to her….she was doing crossword puzzles and cryptology at the age of 5 or 6….she would compete with my grandmother in Wheel of Fortune….she’s a prodigy

When she got to high school she continued to blow us away….she skipped the 8th grade….she didn’t miss a beat in high school….making friends and busting out the classes….she grew into a wonderful personality (as much as I clown her about being Forrest Grump she’s usually VERY cheerful)….by the time she got her perfect score on the Math section of the SAT we knew she was more than something special

But more than anything else she’s my little sister….we get into it sometimes….I know what buttons to push with her to tick her off….I get under her skin sometimes….but she and Nina are my world….

Happy Birthday Baby Beautiful Young Woman Che!