Robin Anderson - Attendant

My little sister is seven years younger than me.  That means when I left home for college at 18, she was only 11 and not even in middle school yet.  Sometimes it's still hard for me to not picture that little girl and instead remember she's been of legal drinking age for six months and will graduate college next May!

As children, we didn't really get along.  (Sometimes we still don't.)  But I still love her and I enjoy getting to know the adult she has become.

 Last fall I had the chance to accompany Robin on her long drive from Arizona back to Pennsylvania for college.  We took six days to drive the (almost) 2,500 mile trip, which began in the Flagstaff Urgent Care on a Sunday morning getting meds for my crazy sinus infection.

We were able to take our time and see a few fun things along the way like the Clinton Presidential Library in Little Rock, Graceland in Memphis, and the Country Music Hall of Fame in Nashville.  I think my favorite stop though was the Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia.  The architecture and design that went into that prison was pretty intricate given the dismal setting.

But, the best part of the trip was getting to spend time with my sister, sans all other family members (no offense).  It was the first time I really got to experience Robin as a "grown-up."  Though she's the baby in our family, out in the real world she's a capable, independent woman.  I am amazed at and proud of the work load she's taken on with school ("triple" majoring in Physics, Astronomy, and Secondary Education), two jobs (while at school and an almost full-time job when home for the summer), and still making time for friends and fun.  She makes me look lazy!

I  look forward to her graduation and her getting her own classroom somewhere (psst! Washington actually likes their teachers!) so she can come visit during summer breaks instead of taking extra classes to finish her degree.