This is the importance of having an older brother or cousin

Someone needs to set the way. Someone needs to be there to show what the possibilities are. Someone needs to try new things and set new paths for others to follow.

Your cousin made the State High School Wrestling Tournament three times, once as a freshmen and in the finals as a sophomore and winning the championship as a Junior.

Before high school, I was hoping he would make the varsity team by his Junior year. When you made the Varsity your freshman year, and won and placed in a couple of tournaments, I realized that making Varsity was just the beginning. When you won Regionals and qualified for Sectionals your Sophomore year, making it to State became a possibility. Even though you were in the Sectional Finals a couple of years, I learned that it was not always the better wrestler who won, but often a contrast in styles. Sometimes it was which team had a tougher schedule of opponnents, that prepare them. Sometimes it was choosing the right weight to be at.

Either way, my nephew never made it to State in wrestling.

My nephew ran track and cross country in high school and won some meets, placed in others and was in the hunt to win by his senior year. His freshman cousin ran cross country too and it helped his wrestling by understanding the importance of being in the best shape possible and out working everyone.

My nephews young brother and sister tried cross country for a couple of years. By his senior year in high school, his younger brother was Captain of the team and one of the top runners. In his signature race in Track and Field, he won regionals and ended up placing third in Fourth in Sectionals just missing the State Meet.

His Senior year he was in the same situation, winning regionals and in the hunt at sectionals for a State Berth. He placed second and made it his last try...

This would have not seemed possible...but his older brother paid the dues and those around him reaped the benefits.

His youngest cousin stood in the sidelines at the State Meet, not realizing that he would be there in a couple of years..