I remember when I was in 9th grade I started wrestling and in Jr High Wrestling I took 2nd in state my first year. Although Jr High is so much easier than high school... It was my first year ever wrestling and I was proud of myself. That summer the coach worked with me and got me to wake up at 6am every morning (for those of you that know me know that is hard to do) to go lift weights to prepare myself for high school. I still remember to this day how excited I was to help my little brother Brycey learn how to wrestle cause he would have a head start on me and I could make him amazing! I took him a few times to lift weights but for the most part he was not into it. He more enjoyed playing his trumpet and choir. But he knew how much I wanted him to. When I was on my mission I had a REALLY hard time when I first went out there! Between not understanding Italian at all and the basic church stories that everyone knew that i did not pay attention to in primary and Sunday school caught up to me. I didn't feel like I was ready to do it and started wishing I was home with my friends and family. It got to the point where I talked to my mission president about it and he told me to call my family and talk to them. I talked to my mom and dad till 2-3 in the morning and shed a few tears cause to this point in my life I had never had a personal challenge like this. Talking with them helped and I ended up telling my president that I was fine and was not wanting to go home anymore. The support from everyone was amazing but I remember more than anything the next day going to check my email and I had a email from my little brother who at the time was 14 years old and the only part on the email I remember is when he said "Brandon I don't want you to come home, If you stay out there I promise that next year I will wrestle for you" I don't remember what else he said, and at that point I was already staying, but I couldn't believe that he would say that! I knew he didn't want to do that, and I realized how much he was looking up to me. Through the rest of my mission anytime I had a hard time I would think back to this email and Bryce's few short words would help me get through those hard times.
I also have many fun memories with the little guy, I remember when I was in 5th grade Bryce was in kindergarden and we were in the same elementary school. I was the older brother and my mom had him walking home from school with me every day. Every day I would make my little 5 year old brother carry home all my books and stuff all the way from Wilson Elementary to the Turpin household (which was a good 15-16 blocks) and he always did. Never complained and was my little personal slave. This same year I started a personal business at school selling boondogle that my parents had bought for Hullaballoo but never used for 1/2 the price that the school was selling it to the kids. Everyone came to me for their boondogle and my dad even helped me build a wooden box to hold them all in so I did not loose them. Even though the school quickly shut me down due to the fact they could not compete with my low prices (funny a school stopped a child from creatively thinking) but every day after I was done doing my business outside the school Bryce would carry that wooden box home along with my books. And I don't ever remember him complaining about it!
I also liked to tease him a lot, I remember when Brittney was born me and Bryce were forced to share a room and have bunk beds. I was on the bottom most the time and loved to kick the bottom of his bed till he would get mad and wake up my parents, they would then come in and yell at him for being loud! I found this amusing that I could be bad and he would get in trouble for it.
And I also remember as much hard time as I gave him (which was many) when ever we got in trouble (which was often) he would always want to come and sleep with me on my bed cause he was sad!
I also loved scaring him, there were 2 things that I remember always scaring him about. The first was a skeleton head that I got for Christmas one year. You would put ooze in its head and it would push out its nose mouth and ears. It also for some reason that I do not remember had glow in the dark teeth! I would put something in front of the head when we were put into bed. After about 10 min I would quietly get up and move the object in front of the head, lay back in my bed and point out to Bryce that it was there. He would FREAK out every time! HAHA! Man it was classic! Them my mom or dad would come in and tell me to not do it, take the teeth and leave. It never got old, I probably did it at least 20 times and every time, even though he knew exactly what it was he would freak out and cry!
I also loved listening to music when I would go to bed. I use to put on some Garth Brooks or one of my karaoke tapes and sing and imagine that I was singing on a stage in front of a million people! I LOVED IT! Well when I got my first CD player I acquired a hand me down CD from my dad called Milli Vanilli. It is the most amazing CD ever and I still know all the songs word for word. But on the end of that CD there was a song. In the middle of it this lady starts singing (or I think thats what it is) and she sounds like a freaking ghost. There is also deep beats leading up to this point that build the anticipation. But every time that lady started singing my brother would freak out as much as he would with the glow in the dark teeth! And I was able to do this many many more times than I was the skeleton head! I have even put a clip below so you can see how ridiculous the song is for yourself
If you scroll to 2:30 into the song you will hear the lead up and the lady ghost that scared the crap out of my brother
Even though when he went back to wrestle after promising to me he would, he quit within the first week cause he knew I was not coming home at this point. I love the kid more than anyone knows. Sometimes I think I don't let him know this as much as I probably should. We are not emotional to each other, a few punches and a laugh or 2 and we know we love each other. But I want to come out with words and say how much I love him, and how proud of him I am for what he has done. He is a great example to me and my sisters and I am greatfull he is my brother!
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