When I first decided to participate in the Big Brother / Big Sister program I thought it would be a fun way to volunteer my time in the community since I have always loved working with children. Although I have had tons of fun with my little sister, Christine, I never knew how much of an impact spending a couple of hours a week with her would have on my life. When I first met Christine I couldn’t help but notice how reserved and shy she was. I knew that getting her out of her shell would be somewhat of a challenge, but from the very start I knew she would come around. After the first couple of meetings and a few hundred questions later, I noticed that Christine progressively started contributing more and more to our talks, and would even offer to tell me all about her day and what happened at school. I was overjoyed that Christine trusted me enough to let her guard down and was brave enough to be herself around someone that she had just met. Since then Christine and I have the sweetest times together. Even though she is only twelve, I regard her as one of my most special friends. We can talk, laugh, joke, and relate to one another as a trusted confidant. I never knew that I would meet such a sweet and special person whom I would look forward to spending time with every week. I feel guilty sometimes because I think that I am the one that has experienced the positive impact through this match. I hope that in some way this friendship has touched Christine the same way it has blessed me.