These two! This brother and sister combo, this Claudia and Gly, born one year apart on the day, the 14th of August. My brother the older, but boys maturing later, they were a set, a pair as if the same age, from the very beginning. The two blondes and me, the dark horse, laughingly, because certainly my raven colored hair set me apart. The pair. The magic duo. In the family structure, I would call them the chosen ones.

My brother named after my father’s father, Gly Crofton. My sister named for the lead in a play that my mother starred in, and my great-grandmother’s sister. Claudia Jo.

These two lived parallel for decades in Laguna Beach, CA. Same friend packages. Same party circuit. Same laughter, actually. Eventually, Claudia moved to Idaho and Gly to Newport Beach. And while they remained as close as distance can accomplish, the tight chain was severed, although every year, as the 14th of August rolled around, the realization of just how close they actually were surfaced once again.

Siblings. The good the bad and the ??? We lost Gly early. Child of the 60s/70s. A soul-searing musician who hid his talent in a haze of drug abuse. Claudia, my confidant, my treasured sister and friend. A most talented florist whose sense of color and form I can only envy. My heart longs for her to live closer.

These two. What a bundle, what beautiful memories I carry of the two of them. I thank them for making my life richer and fuller and in many ways, part of the wild ride.