Craig

Craig
What can I say about my favorite brother Craig. We have been thru much together. My early memory is of someone born around Christmas. Who needs a present if you have a miracle like Craig under the tree. He also had with him the name Buggy. Maybe part of this was due to Craig taking a baby buggy up to the highway on temple street. I am very sure Craig was very full of himself at the time. Dad and Gary were baby-sitting, what could go wrong. Sure enough officer Casey came to the rescue and gave him a lolly pop and front page story and cartoon. So if the brother becomes famous, I am partially to blame.
I recall lots of wrestling matches and piggy back rides when we younger. He was a tag a long at various times wanting to be like his big brothers as they walked thru the woods and went elsewhere. I can recall swimming in the pool in the back yard with Craig, making blanket forts and watching out for the sharks on the floor. He liked to be played with and I liked to play. Thankfully he survived the play which included making snow forts and shovelling snow.
At the age of five he went to head start. Great things were being planned for the Craiger. It was during this time that he went to Kennedy memorial hospital. It was a dark time. He was being treated for Dyslexia gone array. I recall getting party poppers to celebrate him coming home. It did not go well. I can imagine he might of liked things a bit calmer after being with nuns. We just wanted to make it so he wanted to stay home, time for plan B.
We went up to New Hampshire. There was a good family friend who made a wooden boat for Craig. This same man had been on the way to being a Catholic priest before he decided to get married. This helped Craig more than anything he did. Craig just needed to know he was specially loved by God. I can still picture the boat with the sails. I wonder if he remembers.
Another adventure involved Craig trying to hit a baseball. He kept missing. We were at the farm at the time. We went in and prayed and sure enough he hit the ball. He would play little league baseball and thru his hits and fielding ended up winning a trophy for getting the championship and I was a proud big brother who did his best to help.
There are too many stories to tell. Both of us ran cross country. I ran in one race with him when he was in high school and I was in college. He beat me by a lot. He would later tell me he had supplements that helped some. Craig had his struggles and was not afraid to ask for help. One time he thought for sure he had blasphemed the holy spirit by saying the words. He was terrified thinking himself hell bound, running into woods. I did my best to calm his fears.
The thing I am most proud of took place while I was recovering with my own bout with mental illness. Mom told me I needed to talk with my younger brother about the facts of life. I wonder if he even remembers that happening. Well sure enough it must if worked because Buggy had five great kids and now has a bunch of grandkids. He must of learned something. Much else happened. I hope some day we get to share the miracle called life. And yes the Craiger can sing and at one time he showed me he could speak in tongues. Never underestimate the Craiger.