The Martlet

I’m sitting in front of a bank of television screens in the production studio at Calgary’s Mount Royal University, watching a young woman report on the school’s parking situation. She looks like any professional news reporter in her navy trench coat, as she interviews a man unhappy with the situation. The woman is my sister, Breanna, and while it is a little soft, she’s on a real news show.

“I got it!” Breanna whispers over the bustling of the production room.

It’s surreal seeing my little sister in front of me while also watching her sign off on the screen in front of me.

“I got the Medicine Hat job!” she tells me.

Breanna has now been offered two summer practicums at television stations in Southern Alberta. At least one is likely to turn into a job offer. That means soon my 19-year-old sister will likely be working — for real — on a TV news program.

“Congrats,” I say, giving her a big hug, trying to ignore the twinge in my stomach.

I am proud of Breanna and happy for her, but the news is distressing. She is three and a half years younger than me. She’s been in college for less than half the time I was in university.

But then I realize that my sister succeeding isn’t just good for her; it’s also good for me. It motivates me.

I’m convinced that I am where I am in life because I’m a competitive person who happens to be surrounded by highly intelligent, ambitious young people. I even competed against friends for grades. Each time they received a higher mark, it made me write better and study harder.

My friends have started scoring amazing jobs and internships at newspapers and non-profits, or landed great volunteer opportunities overseas. Every time I hear about it, I’m proud, but also a bit jealous. I want to be the one covering news stories for a daily publication, or working to rebuild an orphanage in Africa. So, as I congratulate my friends and family on their new positions, I’m also thinking about what I have to do to get to where I want to be.

My mom always told me, “surround yourself with people who will lift you higher.” It’s a cliché, yes, but seems to be working out for me. I take the successes of those around me and tried to fashion my own path after theirs.

Last spring, a friend of mine went to work for a community paper in the Kootneys. I thought she was crazy, moving to a small town to be a journalist. Now, I’m stupidly envious. She’s swamped with work but she’s kind of a big deal. Every week, there’s a newspaper with her name all over it circulating around town. The more I hear about her job, the more certain I am that being a community reporter is what I want to do next.

So I’ll spend the next year working on my writing portfolio, trying to get clippings that show I can write anything from hard news to soft sports. I’m going to work on making myself marketable to a community paper. I’m going to work on making myself more like my friend.

Breanna calls my parents, beaming with pride.

I tell them I just watched her tape her show, that she’s a superstar.

All the while, I’m thinking what I have to do to be more like my little sister.