"Ewin…my sweet little sistew."

Stupid. Retard. Dummy:

Just a few words that most of our world thinks of people with a mental disability. I have been privileged enough to grow up with someone special who has given me the utmost compassion for those classified as disabled. Jesse Dodge Brooks was born 10 years before I was and although our age gap would normally leave room for drifting into different phases of life, Jesse and I never had that problem. Although he is 28 years-old, he is 7 years-old mentally because he has Downs syndrome. I was four, he was seven. I turned seven and he was still seven. Sixteen came along…still seven. I am now almost 19 years-old and my 28 year-old brother is still seven. Quite frankly, this is one thing that I would never trade with him. While academically he is limited, Jesse surprises me everyday with his sense of humor and witty comments. He is honestly the funniest kid I know! He teaches me more than anyone I have ever met, and yet he has no idea that he does it.

Life is simple. There are no complications. There is no reason to worry. Life is so good! All these are things that Jesse has taught me, again without even knowing it. Routine is key in his life, but it is the simple things that make him the most joyful. Tearing off a new day on his Elvis calendar, "wrestling" with Dad or "Pops" as he calls him, movie nights with the family, walks in the park, and of course Friday nights- pizza, root beer, and snickers. Could life get any better? He works every day at a sheltered workshop with adults with similar disabilities as him, and while the basic jobs he does often become redundant, he looks forward to his 90 cents an hour paycheck every other Friday. He has no concept of money. He doesn't stress or worry about what is to come. He finds something to look forward to and works his heart out until he gets there.

Selfishness and worry fill me up. I become anxious over the littlest of things, and then I see my 5'0" "little" brother's smile while watching Season 3 of Full House for the 25^th time, and a burden begins to lift. Why worry? Why stress? Jesse has no concept of the complexity and history of theology and he could never write a statement of faith. He couldn't list the books of the Bible or quote scripture in times of need. And yet he has the most faith and hope of anyone I've met. He is the epitome of joy. When the going gets tough and when I feel like I can barley go on, it's Jesus in my brother that brings me back to my knees, thanking the Lord for the blessings. God is good, all the time. Jesus, a good movie, and a king-size snickers…life is complete for Jesse Dodge.