Andrew has a lot of cousins. Their ages range from 40 to 14. With that age range, one can imagine that he was closer to some more than others. Markus, Colleen, and McKenzie are the three who shared most major events with Andrew.
Markus and Andrew got to play football together the year Andrew was in third grade.
They played against each other when Andrew was a freshman and Markus was a senior.
Colleen and Andrew shared most everything together--Andrew was from February 9 to May 7 older than Colleen, so they were in the same swimming lessons, went to the same daycare for a while, same Sunday School class, same school class from third grade on
However, it is Andrew and McKenzie who share many similarities.
Christine and I are constantly amazed at how alike these two cousins are. They both are a bit unorganized (translate--very messy rooms, though I think McKenzie tries to keep hers clean--Andrew gave up...he just waited for me to clean it for him). They both have the same attitude towards school. They are both very competitive on the athletic field. Watching McKenzie play basketball is a bit bittersweet for me. She has the same intensity on defense as Andrew. They spend a bit of every game on the floor. They both got their concussions in basketball.
I found a picture of the two of them today. As I study the picture, I noticed that their hair is the exact same color. They both have the same smile. They both have the same twinkle in their eyes. They are the boy/girl version of the same Delp grandchild.
As McKenzie grows up, I wish for her some of the same qualities that Andrew had. I hope she is kind to all she meets. I hope she finds and cultivates a personal relationship with Jesus. I hope she sees value in education. I hope she is a great teammate to all. I hope she knows how much she is loved, no matter how tough life is.
Andrew forgot for a moment how much people loved him. I will make sure McKenzie never questions that.
~Andrew's Mom
Last week, we spent a week with the Carpenter's. My boys had such a great time with their cousins. Although a lot of the family came and went, the cousins were the one thing that stayed all week. It was precious to see and the bond so deep. I wrote a blog about it, if you have time to read it.
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