Boys are weird, and man do I know that from experience. I grew up with two older brothers (Addison—22 years old and Pryce—20 years old). I’m not the kind of girl to hang out by myself with my dolls and let them play in the dirt. Oh no, I joined in. And I beat both of them. That being said, as we got older there were certain things that I learned from them, and they are lessons that I keep with me as I tackle life's twists and turns.

1. They will protect you no matter what.

I figured this out at a high school football game when a random kid stole a $1 bill out of my hand, and Pryce and one of his friends tromped around the stadium like a bunch of security guards looking for the guy. Eventually they found him and asked for the dollar back. He claims he lost it (of course), but my brother took his candy, so fair trade I guess?

2. Anywhere can turn into a UFC cage fight.

After a life time of surprise attacks starting with, “Hey Eryn, what would you do if a guy came up to you and did THIS?” as one of my brothers would put me in a choke hold and try their best to stop me from escaping. And this happened anywhere, in the grocery store, at church, in my room right before I went to sleep, the living room while I was watching TV or doing homework, all of the natural places a random man would creep up on me and grab me.

3. If you hit one of them, expect a hit in return (twice as hard).

I mean literally and metaphorically. At one point in time, Pryce and I shared a phone (because for some reason our parents wanted to punish us for something). I always had the phone because I’m a terrible sister. So one day, I’m sitting on the couch hanging out on MY phone and Pryce comes up and asks for it. I say, “Yeah one sec,” (You just threw the first punch Eryn, way to go). Immediately after I say this, my brother proceeds to drag me off of the couch and take the phone. Lesson learned my friend, lesson learned.

4. If you need a cry in the middle of a basketball game? Do it.

Now, even though my brothers can be a little aggressive at times (* cough * Pryce) there were times that they were there for me. One instance in particular is when we were playing basketball in the driveway and I was venting about a friend. All of a sudden I was crying, and my brother was hugging me (AW).

5. Don’t pretend to be a couch.

Pretty much the only thing you need to know about this one is this: One time I thought it would be funny to pretend to be a couch. I put the cushions over me and my brothers would sit on me. 0/10 would recommend. Bruised ribs are never fun. The best part though is that they showed me videos of Jeff Dunham a couple days after I was a couch. Was I crying because it was so funny, or I was in so much pain? The world may never know.

6. If you don’t know what you’re talking about, shut up.

After about two years of Addison going, “Eryn, shut up, you don’t know what you’re talking about. Eryn shut up. Eryn shut up.” I finally realized that if I don’t know what I’m talking about, I just shouldn’t say anything. Which I was very grateful for when I got to high school. Ah, the ignorant idiots. How I do not miss you whatsoever.

7. If it won’t matter in two years, it doesn’t matter now.

This one wasn’t a fun one either. Because in my high school mind, that Chemistry unit 3 test in my sophomore year would matter in two years. It would dictate what my future college would be. It would dictate my future career (test anxiety at its finest folks). But now it’s my coping technique (and my excuse to have an extra cookie). I use it to relax when I'm freaking out about things or just feeling stressed. Because Addison constantly told me my issues were insignificant, it made me realize that there is a time period to be stressed out. You get eight hours to be sad. And then you move on. Because that issue, that problem can't possibly be worth more than eight hours of my time.

8. There are good guys out there.

I can say from experience, that my brothers might be a little much, a little loud, a little aggressive, a little spastic, but I wouldn’t trade them for anything. They made me who I am today. They are the reason I am so humble (because they would tell me I am not, in fact, hot shit). They are the reason I am so grateful (because they would eat all of the food before I could get to it). The reason I like trucks, motorcycles and cars in general. The reason I can do donuts in my car (sorry Mom and Dad). The reason I can personally guarantee that your driving will not scare me (because both of them suck at driving).

So there it is. I am sure in the next five years the list will grow exponentially. But hey, they have the rest of their lives to explain to me the ins and outs of being an adult and succeeding. But no pressure guys.