Lovers may come and go,
but family is forever.
On this day of celebration,
I just want to remind you
that even if you can’t celebrate with romance
you are still surrounded by love.
Happy Valentine’s Day to the best brother.
—
When you were born,
Mom and Dad told me to love you.
When you were older,
I thought I might actually hate you.
As I became an adult,
I realized Mom and Dad were right.
Happy Valentine’s Day, brother.
You’re the best.
—
As long as I can remember
it’s been you and me against the world.
Now that we’re adults,
you’re still the person I call
to remind me of who I was
and who I still want to be.
Happy Valentine’s Day to the best brother ever.
I love you.
—
Dearest Brother,
Thank you for being the kind of man
I can count on when others let me down.
For being a good listener,
and for going out of your way to help me
all those times.
You are my hero,
my champion,
my best friend,
and I love you.
Happy Valentine’s Day
—
Big brother, we weren’t always close.
You liked to tease me when we were little, and
I was absolutely certain you had cooties back then.
But as we grew, the cooties faded. You showed me how
a girl should be treated by being kind to your girlfriends,
and I learned to expect the same. You defended me when I needed it,
and sometimes even when I didn’t deserve it. For this and
a hundred thousand other things, I love you. Happy Valentine’s Day.
—
Little brother, you’ve always been second.
People told you to look up to me.
Second born, second to go to school and drive,
second to fall in love and marry.
But when it came to doing things right,
you were always first to figure out
the best way, the lasting way.
For this, I have always looked up to you.
Happy Valentine’s Day
—
To my twin:
From the moment of conception, it’s always been you and me.
We were together in the crib, in play,
starting school, and even in the rough years of middle and high school
it was us against the world.
Now you’re far away, and although you’re not physically close,
I still carry you close to me.
Happy Valentine’s Day to my first best friend.
I love you.
—
When we were little, Mom and Dad said they knew what was best
by making us share a room,
and not allowing the invisible line in the car,
that no stray arm or leg could touch.
By forcing us to spend time together on camping trips
and saying that we would thank them someday.
Now that they are gone,
and you are still here,
I wish that I could thank them
(and even tell them that they were right).
For forcing on me the best friend that I could never have imagined.
Happy Valentine’s Day, Brother.
—
Brother, you are my keeper of secrets:
No one knows my embarrassing stuff like you do.
The buttons that anyone can push to make me crazy,
The things I’m afraid of but don’t want to admit to,
the things I secretly want to do, but am afraid I’d fail at,
and the things I’m ashamed of and would take back if I could.
Because you love me anyway,
and root for me even when I’m less than I wish I could be,
I had to tell you how much I love and appreciate you.
Happy Valentine’s Day
—
B is for the boy things you taught me how to play with, even though I was a girl.
R is for the roughhousing that mom always told us to stop doing.
O is for the orphan that you used to tell me I actually was, left at the doorstep.
T is for the tire you came out in the pouring rain to help me change when it went flat.
H is for the home you helped me fix up when I bought one.
E is for even: something we both tried to get as kids.
R is for rare, because having such a wonderful brother is exactly that.
Have the happiest of valentine’s days, my wonderful brother.