"Little People"

Sometimes, there are people in your life who can – without even trying – bring a tear to your eye, make you laugh, take you down a peg, or show you how much you mean to them. My three little brothers are like this. The youngest is only five.
Life can be interesting when you have little brothers. Some days you find yourself dodging Nerf bullets. Or when you go to sit on the couch, it is entirely without pillows because they were needed to make a fort. Or you have to carefully step around the miniature highway on the floor that's full of Hot Wheels.
You might be in the process of writing an important story, when you unexpectedly hear a voice directly behind you, asking what sort of decorations you have on your shelf. As you get up from your seat, a little person grips your shoulders and hoists himself up for a piggyback ride. Or that same little person sits on your lap and gently arranges your face into various weird expressions.
If you can't take a brutally honest opinion, don't ask a little brother. He might tell you that your new haircut is just fine because “I like your wig!” Also, did you know that when you first get up in the morning, you “look funny”? That's okay; they love you just the same.
Little brothers are sometimes unpredictable. One minute, you're laughing at their antics. The next, you're touched by something they say. This can happen when they quite eloquently explain to you why it doesn't make sense to be afraid of the dark. Or they tell you an obscure scientific fact they just learned, and you remember that - way back when - you read about it but apparently didn't retain the information.
Even someone who isn't much of a softy can't help but melt when a little brother comes over for a goodnight kiss, then hurries into his bedroom, fetches his teddy bear, and runs back to collect a second kiss because of course Teddy can't be left out. And next time you might be greeted by three little people standing in a row, each holding a favorite stuffed animal up for a kiss.
Did I mention that I love my little brothers? I can't help it. What's not to love? Isaiah, Seth, and Joshua... this one's for you.