What types of circumstances make a person become who they are today? Is it the people in your daily lives? Or the places you've been? Or the things you've accomplished? All of these have impacted me and helped me become the person that I am today. But there are two people that have probably had the biggest effect on me of all: my older twin sisters.

Most younger siblings will admire their older siblings for most of their entire lives. However I feel like sometimes I have taken that a step further. I look up to my sisters, and fully believe that if it weren't for them, I would be a completely different person than I am now.

They will always be four years older than me, always four years wiser, and always four years more equipped than me. That has yet to change. From the time I was born, they've assumed this role as more than a sibling. A friend. A protector. A counselor. A teacher. We would play 'School' during our free time, and they would attempt to teach me multiplication and long division, when I had barely known how to count. I began to pride myself in the extra knowledge that I had known simply because they took the time to teach it to me. They acted as a friend in more ways than just playing 'School' with me. Unlike many older siblings, they included me almost 100% of the time. From when I was four, and we played store, to last month, when they asked me to play Frisbee with all their friends. Counseling also came natural to them. They've dealt with the majority of the problems I face and they are constantly more than willing to offer me their advice when I need it.

Finally, while I see them as a counselor, a teacher, a protector, and a friend, I most importantly love that they have been a role model for me. They have helped me set my goals in life, and from the very beginning, they helped me start out on the right foot. If I chose two characteristics in which I pride myself the most, I would choose my gymnastics and my academics. I started gymnastics as soon as I could, simply because my sisters were already in it. And while they did quit relatively soon after I started, I immediately fell in love with it. I have my sisters to thank for that. Furthermore, when my sisters were in high school, they succeeded in almost every they did. They set an extremely high standard that I can't help but try to live up to. So even though there are probably other older sisters who are similar to mine, I cannot deny the effect that my sisters have had on me. I have them to thank for the person that I am today.