Marianne was my oldest sister. Because she was eventually the oldest of 12 children, she was like an adult from a young age. I was the sixth child with two older sisters. Marianne is special because she taught me many things. In the summer between my kindergarten and first grade school years, she taught me to read. That summer, our family was given many old reading texts from our school, so she used them to teach me to read. When I was seven, Marianne taught me to play the piano. I am very grateful for this because learning to read music from a young age made music like a second language to me. Marianne, who is now a doctor and the administrator of a health clinic in Sonoma, California, was also always a great example. She worked hard in school and cared about the poor from a young age. I remember when she was about 12, she volunteered at a Head Start. Now at age 50, I am finally working at Head Start like Marianne did when she was 12. We were all excited when we found out that her Head Start would be on Romper Room, a preschool show that was showing in about 1967.
One of my favorite memories of Marianne was when she came to play guitar and sing for me at the hospital after I had been in an accident. When I was 19, I was riding my bicycle when I was hit by a Winnebago and both my lungs collapsed. I was on a respirator for two months and couldn't talk because of my tracheotomy. On Easter, Marianne came home for a visit from where she was being a resident. She put on a show, singing and playing the guitar, since I couldn't do it myself.
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