My Other Half

Long, long ago when gas was just 50 cents a gallon, my parents got a big surprise. They were expecting....for the sixth time. My mom already had a step-daughter in college and more importantly a house full of school aged kids, leaving her afternoons free of children. But that all came to end with this surprise. My mother's svelte figure also came to an end -- she gained weight more quickly and thought this was the sign of a a big, boisterous boy. After all, they already had 4 girls and only one boy....the odds for a boy seemed to be in their favor.

The big day came and while my mother survived the harsh anesthetic (ether), my dad was in the waiting room. He wasn't that surprised to find out they didn't have a boy. But he was in shock to find out there was not one, but two girls! The whole family scrambled to come up with some rhyming names and Karen and Sharon were soon chosen. But since this would likely be my dad's last offspring, he decided put his name, Henry Joseph into ours. Thus I became Sharon Henrietta and my twin became Karen Jo.


So I grew up with a fraternal twin, but most people thought I was her older sister. In elementary school we were always in different classrooms, with the exception of kindergarten. In this picture I am on the left, I was always one of the tallest girls in my class and Karen was always one of the shortest. We had so much fun growing up and although we had our skirmishes, our friendship was strong. I do recall being about 4 or 5 years old and how we each confessed and lamented to each other how much we wanted to be like each other. I wanted to be like her because she was adventurous, more spontaneous, and wasn't afraid to speak her mind. I was more timid, but was studious, serious, and had healthier hair (although you can't tell by the picture).


As we grew up, our paths diverged, but we always could appreciate our differences. I am more scholarly, she is more practical. She wears a size 4 and obviously don't. But the coolest thing about Karen is that whenever she comes to visit me, one of the first places she goes is to my closet to look at what new clothes I have. She is so enthusiastic about it, you'd think that the clothes would actually fit her!

So the biggest news is that my other half now owns a motorcycle! She's been going out with a guy who is super-nice, super-cool, and rides a Harley. I can't wait to post some pics of her on her new bike. Now all I can think of is how can I match this daring, bold move!

When we were little, Electra Woman and Dyna Girl were our heroes. They were these kick-ass superheroes that had a brief stint on Saturday morning TV -- if you blinked you would have missed it. But now Karen and I have grown into two modern day super women! Here we are as our super-hero personas. The image is a bit rough, but you get the picture. So work hard to be your own superhero. And if you are so lucky to find a good friend along the way, don't take it for granted.

Sharon