It's Worth The Wait: 4 Love Lessons My Sister's Engagement Taught Me

It’s a funny thing being a sister; some days, you’re yelling at each other for no real reason and other days, you realize she's the best thing that your parents could have ever given you.

Sisters are more than siblings — they’re best friends, partners in crime, supporters and most importantly, they sometimes teach you life’s most important lessons.

For me, the recent engagement of my older sister, Rachel, taught me more about love than any romantic story ever had before.

It’s not because my sister and her fiancé overcame some seemingly impossible battle or are the epitome of the perfect couple — it’s because until her engagement, I never seen two people fall in love right in front of my face.

Watching my sister go from a nervous date to an engagement was my front row ticket to a love story unfolding before my very own eyes.

My sister has always given me advice and the occasional tough love, but no lesson compares to this real life example of two kids falling in love and creating a life together.

In the matter of one relationship and several years, my sister has taught me what real love looks like and what it's really all about:

It’s Impossible To Predict

When my sister first met her fiancé, he was just a random bank teller; now he’s the person she will spend her entire life alongside. The meeting was a total accident — no blind dates or dating apps — just the right time and place.

It’s All About Working Together

Like all couples, my sister and her fiancé aren’t perfect. They are two individuals joining to create one family.

Moving in together and getting engaged transformed them into a team that constantly works together each and every day.

Sometimes, my sister’s work drives her away from her fiancé for long periods of time. They’ve learned to not only deal with the distance, but how to use it to strengthen their relationship.

It’s Okay To Fight

Again, although my sister’s relationship is full of happiness, there are also moments when they fight.

And, it’s normal for couples to fight. Whether it's a big or small fight, each one teaches couples how to handle disagreements. Fights challenge couples to learn how to express themselves and compromise for the greater good.

Just because a couple fights doesn’t mean they’re angry with one another; it means they are mature enough to handle disagreements while keeping the relationship stable.

It’s Worth The Wait

Like many couples out there, my sister and her fiancé both went through their fair share of failed relationships before finding the right one.

Finding love, or more importantly, finding the one you want to spend your entire life with, is no easy task. It takes patience, effort, time, tears and a little bit of luck.

I have seen my sister get her heart broken, and I have now also seen her never have to worry about that again. She showed me that with every heartbreak, a person is one step closer to finding the one.

Watching your sister become engaged is one of the rarest and greatest experiences in life. It holds the potential to change your entire mindset about love. Coming from a foolish little sister who stopped believing in real relationships, I owe my sister and her fiancé a lot more than I can explain in words.

When someone you grew up with and love dearly finds a love of his or her own, it's the best love story you'll ever see. It puts all romance movies to shame and gives you a first-hand look at what genuine love stands for.

As my sister now prepares to be a bride, I will continue to watch her grow and watch her fall even more in love. She’s been there for me since day one and now, I get to be alongside her as she prepares for one of the biggest days of her life.

Even after the big day passes, I will always hold onto all that she has taught me.