Of Sibling Rivalry & Raffle Tickets

/ Ally Bean

DSCN3613

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I’m an only child so for me sibling rivalry is a spectator sport.  Filled with unique characters.  Often entertaining.

So late one afternoon the doorbell rang.  When I looked out our front door side lights I saw two sisters in Catholic school uniforms: a 6 y.o. and a 9 y.o. with their mother standing far behind them down the sidewalk.

The sisters were punching/pushing each other off our front stoop trying to be the one who stood directly in front of our door when I opened it.

The 9 y.o. won.

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But before she could tell me why she was here and what it was I would be buying, the 6 y.o. took one last stab at getting my attention.  And I have to say it was clever.

We have lots of rose bushes along our front walk and with roses, come bees– especially in September when bees get crazy as the summer ends.  They buzz everywhere.

So the 6 y.o., batting her hands wildly, jumped in front of her sister to save me from a bee getting into the house.  The 9 y.o. and I never saw the bee in question, but the brave 6 y.o. assured us that it was right there.

And, as we all know, 6 y.o. girls of all religions, races & nationalities, always tell the truth.

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At this point the 9 y.o. looked like she was going to strangle her little sister.  But her mother noticed this too, so she came up closer to the house and threatened said:

<loud voice> <do this or else>

“Tell Her What You’re Selling.  And Where You Go To School.”

</do this or else> </loud voice>

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There was a long pause, so quiet and still that you could hear the gears creaking inside each girl’s brain.

I waited.

A mere 3 minutes after I’d opened the door the two sisters had come to the realization that they needed to work together in this moment if they were to get a sale and keep Mom happy.

So with a more-grimace-than-smile look on their faces, they told me their sales pitch– and I found out that I’d be buying two $10.00 raffle tickets that would give me the chance, later this month, to win:

<loud voice> <in unison>

“Three. Thousand. Dollars.”

</in unison> </loud voice>

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Not to dismiss the wonderfulness of winning that much money but I gotta tell ‘ya that from my point of view, I felt like I had already spent my $20.00 wisely.  I didn’t need to win $3000.00 later, when at this very moment a live one-act show, such as this one, had magically appeared at my front door.

Like I said, sibling rivalry.  So fun to watch.

63 thoughts on “Of Sibling Rivalry & Raffle Tickets”

  1. So cute! I can remember that whenever one of us got in trouble, we all got in trouble, since we were always together in the neighborhood. What one did, we all participated in, good or bad. It’s funny. I don’t remember having any sibling rivalry. I guess K and I were always watching out for M. It sure is fun to watch other kids, though!

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  2. It’s always better when you aren’t in it. My brothers are so much older than I am that there wasn’t any at least for me. My brothers….well, that’s another story. Of course as we got older (like in our 20s and 30s) we would argue about who Mom loved best but only in front of her to make her crazy.

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    • kate, it’s different, I think, when there’s a significant age difference btwn siblings. These two girls are so close in age and do everything together, from what I can observe. I suspect that there’ll be many more shoving matches before they reach adulthood!

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      • They are close in age but one is developmentally older so I expect she has that advantage which her mother tries to compensate for. In a few years, they will be best friends sharing clothes….hopefully. I always thought it would be fun to have a sister….maybe. Now that I’m older, I think it would be wonderful.

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  4. When I was about 7-year-old, I went door-to-door selling Camp Fire Mints. A lady answered the door and yelled at me. “Didn’t you see the “No Soliciting” sign?” and slammed the door. Sure I saw it. I just didn’t know what it meant!

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  5. Well, I’m the oldest of five… me and four little sisters… and only 8 years separated the five of us. Yeah, we had a little of that rivalry going on in my house. As the only boy, though, I was the one who always got in trouble for it….

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  6. I was the youngest and the only girl. Some would claim I had it easy and always got my way. That is not true! Don’t listen to my younger brother! Actually, I got in trouble for picking on him more often than he got in trouble for picking on me.

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    • Zazzy, so what you’re saying is that sibling rivalry is never what it seems. Funny how many relationships turn out to be like that. You think it’s one way, but instead it’s another.

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  7. I’m astonished that they were actually going door to door. These days, that’s a rarity. Most parents–in my experience–lean on their friends and relatives for Junior and Sissy’s fundraisers. Which reminds me that it’s about time for my sister to soak me for ten bucks for Nephew’s football program. Sigh.

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        • Zazzy, I’ve never heard of that expectation, but I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s the case with this school. I’ll be an easy touch on that scenario IF my “donation” benefits our tax return’s bottom line. Oh, the games we play…

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  8. I didn’t really encounter much sibling rivalry with three brothers, the youngest 15 years younger than I am. A sister would probably have been different. My girls’ interests and talents were so opposite that they didn’t compete with each other much at all, which isn’t to say that they didn’t fight. 😉

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    • Margaret, I get the impression that these two girls are into the exact same things all the time. They’re cute as can be, but the older one has a few years and pounds on the younger one. Once they get to be about the same size physically, I’ll be interested to see how the relationship evolves. That is, I’ll see it if they still live around here.

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  10. “…sibling rivalry. So fun to watch.”—But not so fun to deal with. Ugh. Luckily my boys are beyond that now.

    Here’s hoping you win the big bucks! Thanks for the blog follow. Much appreciated. See you on Twitter. 🙂

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    • philmouse, I’m sure that you’re right about this being a forced march. And because their mother knew that I’d say “YES” to whatever the girls were selling I was their first sales call. It was so funny to watch them. I can only hope that other neighbors got as much joy out of them as I did!

      Liked by 1 person

  12. Hi there. Susie sent me 🙂
    My husband is an only child and can’t comprehend the arguments my brother and I get into even as adults.
    Sibling rivalry is a mysterious thing.

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  14. As one of many sisters, I have to say these young ladies were quite tame in how they dealt with each other. Which makes them adorable. My sibling rivalry stories would make your toes curl and you would pay us to never come back. 😉
    Susie sent me.

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  15. Ha! takes me back to the days of Girl Scout Cookies door to door. I was never any good at it. Should have wacked bees. *s* Susie sent me. 🙂

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    • amy, I had to sell Girl Scout cookies, too. And if last year repeats itself, these girls will be back in February to sell me some more cookies. As there are no bees around at that time of year, I’ll be intrigued to see how the 6 y.o. takes the center stage. You just know that she will!

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    • annette, from my side of things it’s hilarious to have these kids come to the door and sell me whatever. I never know what the sales pitch will be, which makes it entertaining, ‘ya know?

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  18. Too funny. Hi – Dana here, from Susie’s party. Nice to meet you. Man, if I had known my sister and I could get paid for our sibling shenanigans, I might have enjoyed it more ;-). Great post. On my way now to read the one about the grill, the deck, and the squirrel. Needless to say, I’m greatly intrigued, lol.

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    • Dana, thank you for stopping by. “Shenanigans” is the right word to describe these two sisters! It was a moment in time worth remembering, especially the arm-flailing bee-swatting part of the conversation. Hilarious.

      Liked by 1 person

  19. So glad Susie sent me over–I really got a kick out of this. As an only child myself, I am right there with you on the spectator aspect. However, I get to observe my own two boys in my own house, which definitely makes for some interesting shows.

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    • Audrey, funny how all the only children who’ve read this get what I’m saying about how wacky it is to watch sibling rivalry from afar. But you, of course, get to observe it up close and personal with your boys, as well. If nothing else, you’ve got a constant source of entertainment. Or irritation, I suppose. 😉

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    • Kassandra, imaginary bees, you say? I got it on good authority from a cute 6 y.o. girl that there really was a bee buzzing the door. That being said, it was a genus ploy to get my attention. I predict that she’ll go far in life.

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  21. Ally, your style is really fun and unique. Great story, concise, charming, and I was amused at the clever code. I bet you have cleverly employed the ampersand, too, right? Check out amperart.com

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  22. Pingback: Of Sibling Rivalry & Raffle Tickets | Daya Ryelle

    • Jim, I bet that you did. Considering the ages of these two girls, I look forward to many more opportunities to part with my money, all in the name of a good Catholic education.

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    • Hello Regular Guy NYC! Thanks for dropping by. Glad that your memories of childhood include a bit of sibling rivalry. I may have missed out on that personally, but it’s fun to watch from afar– or learn about it via bloggers.

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  26. Thanks for the trip down nostalgia lane! My sis and I are 2 years apart. Our rivalry moments usually came in bids for parental attention. Glad you chose this particular post to share at Susie’s party. 🙂

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    • Kitt, Susie’s parties are the best, aren’t they? I had no idea how popular “sibling rivalry” was going to be when I wrote this post. I just thought the whole experience was funny, so I had to share it. Thanks for stopping by.

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