Intimacy

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Intimacy

Intimacy is often defined as arising from a close acquaintance, association, or familiarity. This definition would definitely describe the relationship I have with my sister, Catherine. We share just about everything that goes on in our lives and know each other like the back of our hands. We are so close, in fact, that rarely do we hear what another is feeling before we already know. We can tell each other's mood by the body language we are using.
I plan to give a brief summary of this relationship and the intimacy involved in it. There are many possible reasons why some people are attracted to each other and form relationships. Some of these reasons are personality, physical looks, intellectual stimulation, things in common, and differences. My sister and I developed our relationship differently than the way you would with someone who you just randomly meet on the street. We shared common parents, household, schedules, and heritage. Therefore, we were naturally inclined to develop some sort of relationship and intimacy. If we hadn't, our living conditions would have become understandably tenuous. The development of relationships and intimacy has some very definitive steps. The first step is initiating which is making contact with the other person and showing that you are the kind of person worth talking to. Our relationship was initiated as soon as I was brought into this world and facilitated by the fact that we were brother and sister. The next step is experimenting which is deciding whether we want to pursue a relationship further by using small talk and the like. Since I was unable to talk at the time, my sister and I dismissed this step. Next comes the step of intensifying when the expression of feelings become more common. This came quite naturally to the two of us. People were always asking my sister to show how much she loved me which often led to hugs, kisses, hand holding, and other common expressions of love people often demonstrate in a sibling relationship.
The next step is integrating which is when we give up characteristics of our old selves and become different people. This has not happened to me because this relationship has always been with me. My sister was not always a sister and definitely changed when I became her brother. Bonding is the next step which is when th...

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...olid relationship, my sister and I definitely have our ups and downs. Movement is always to a new place. We are always trying out new ways of behaving towards each other and this makes movement mandatory.
Sometimes we even go back a step or two before we return to the point we were before. The relationship my sister and I share involves a high level of self- disclosure. We are always intentionally revealing information to one another that is important and would not always be known. Our breadth is wide as we can discuss anything from sex to politics. The depth is great because we do not pull any punches. When we are discussing something we are as personal as you can get. Neither of us hides much and when one does it is easily caught by the other. Our conversations often include facts, opinions, and feelings. Lying does not come across good and it is rarely attempted by either of us. There are many reasons for this self-disclosure but it is mainly “just to get it off of our chest” or catharsis. A brother-sister relationship is definitely a unique one as evidenced here. Although it can reach some of the later and nastier stages, I don't see this as being the case in our relationship.

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