Birthdays!

Not only was it Jesus’ birthday recently, but Christmas time is jampacked with other birthdays too. On December 26th, Brendan’s dad, Pat, and my sister Laura were both born (slightly different years of course). And just after New Year’s on January 10th, my brother Tom was born.


Pat

Seniority comes first in this list. So first up is my dad! Happy 53rd Birthday!!

Here is my dad, the man who has been an inspiration for me to be an explorer and to see the world. Ever since hearing about his travels from his native Australia to the distant lands of Europe and America when he was young, I have wanted to go and do the same kind of thing.

My dad has been a dedicated family man who has raised two great kids. I remember the weekend drives our family would go on. Growing up we would always go to different places in and around Minnesota, the old historical farms, pumpkin patches or state parks, where we would go exploring on walks. I remember the great family vacations that he and mom would plan out. They took us to all sorts of places to expand our horizons, places like New York (to visit family and see where my mom grew up), Texas (to see where my parents met), and South Dakota (to see the black hills and Mount Rushmore) to name some of the really memorable destinations.
This is a picture of my dad and me at the wedding in May. As you can see we’re very similar, both good looking, stylish, intelligent gentlemen. Following his example I have learned that the best way to live my life is to be honest and hardworking. He has taught me the virtue of true patience and that not everything in life is worth getting stressed over.

This picture is one of my all time favorites; it’s a showcase of two generations of Egan weddings. The man on the right side is Mark; a native New Zealander, who lives in Iowa. He served as my Dad’s best man at his wedding. The dashing gent on the left is Kurt, my best man. As one of the best friends I will ever have. I couldn’t have asked for a better best man, and I’m sure my dad would say the same about Mark.

So, in conclusion, happy birthday to the best Dad in the world. Thank you for all you've done over the years. I'll be lucky if I turn out like you someday.

Laura

And here is Laura, my beautiful and beautiful-souled sister. The Timorese would say that she is furak and laran diak (physically beautiful and beautiful inside : ) She will be twenty years old!

Laura and I have shared a room for most of our lives. As we’ve grown up, we’ve developed the habit of talking late into the night, usually collapsing into fits of giggling because we are “slap happy” from long days of music and sports practice and lots of studying.

Laura is someone who I can talk to about anything and we can turn conversation deep quickly and talk about God and life and what we’re learning through our experiences. That’s something that I really appreciate, because life isn’t meant to be lived just on the surface.

Laura is my younger sister, but I have learned many things from her. One of the things that I am most grateful for is her example of humility. Laura succeeds at all things, through talent and a lot of hard work, but she is quick to turn the attention away from herself and to others. Whatever vocation she is called to I know that she will thrive in it because she has learned the secret of selfless love (which many people don’t learn until they are much older or sometimes ever).

In her lifestyle and conversation she is always putting her focus on others. She is very friendly, a great listener, and super-pleasant to be around. She involves herself in activities that really make a difference in people’s lives.
Besides her humility, I love Laura’s positive attitude! No matter what happens she can find a bright side in it. And she’s great at making fun things happen. She helps keep the kids in our family together having fun by starting games and cards and talks with the kids. And finally, she’s hilarious! She’s one of the people that can be quiet a lot of the time and then come out with a zinger and make everyone laugh : ) We’ll just say that Laura > Chuck Norris, and leave it at that.



Laura modeling a Mongolian scarf our friend Jian gave us from China. This pose is part of a dance that she does. When we used to go bowling (when we got free passes from school) and she got a strike, she would always do a little ballerina twirl and ends up in this pose. It’s one of her signatures now : ) It’s so cool that others even try to copy it (cough, cough…Tom : )



Laura swing dancing like crazy with Maria! Laura and I learned to swing dance when we got how-to-dance movies from the library. The we would watch them over and over and practice, taking turns doing the girls and guys parts : )

Laura was my maid of honor at my wedding and she is one of my favorite people in the whole world, as are all of my siblings. But Laura, thank you for your example and all the great memories! Happy 20th birthday!!!

Tom

My brother Tom is turning 21 years old! Here Tom shows how mature he is, smiling with Mom by the Gold Nugget Restaurant at Buckskin Joe’s in Colorado. This is Tom’s classic smile. After a smart alec comment he’ll smile like this and you can’t do anything but laugh : )

Tom has the gift of a great sense of humor. When we have dinner as a family he often takes conversation for random twists and turns that are entertaining and unforgettable. He’s also very fun to be around and can be exceedingly generous. He often surprises me with his random acts of kindness toward other people.

Besides these talents, Tom is very musically gifted. Right now he is in the Music Education at Benedictine College and is loving it. Singing and tuba-playing our Tom’s fortes. He even volunteered to sing at our wedding. Here he is practicing with our friend, Katy, and my Godmother, Barb (not that Tom needs practice : )

This picture was taken in New Orleans, Louisiana, when we went down to with a group of college kids from St. Thomas Aquinas (ISU) to help gut houses after Hurricane Katrina. I have many favorite memories with Tom, but this week was one of the best. Any time you spend all day with people swinging sledge hammers and getting dirtier than you could have imagined, you bond in a special way : )

Throughout the week Tom gradually opened up more about deeper thoughts and feelings until one night after he’d had a Turkish coffee he said something during reflection and it actually made me cry. Watching Tom grow in his faith and be able to open up about deeper things has been one of the pleasures God is constantly blessing me with.

Tom, keep up the great work! And happy 21st birthday! I’m so proud to be your sister and I expect great things from you!



Happy unbirthday to everyone else and we’ll talk to you soon!

Always,

Rachel and Brendan