My newly minted threenager has historically been a little slow on his expressive language skills.  Over the past two weeks or so, though, he’s been eating his vegetables or something (when I’m not looking) because all of a sudden, he won’t. shut. up.

And everything he says is an echo of his idol.

His big sister.  (…Or Superman. But there’s not much of a story there so read on, will ya?)

Everything she does, he does it, too.

(Fortunately… she’s happy to show him.)

I just love it.

Here’s the thing, though.  He’s 3 and she’s 6.  Neither of them has any idea she’s different.  They are simply brother and sister, growing up in central suburbia, learning about life as they go.  Their current worries are what’s for dinner (spaghetti and meatballs, please!), what each other’s current favorite color is (green for her, blue for him), who has the biggest boo-boo, and which of them can do the coolest tricks on our swing set.

His blind faith and trust in her makes my heart burst. Right now, he’s forming the basis of what I hope will lead him to eventually be her biggest, fiercest advocate.  Who knows – maybe he’ll be the next Dr. Skotko, the world-renowned Down syndrome specialist who has a sister with the condition.  Maybe he’ll go to Washington and fight for people like his sister.  Maybe he’ll run diversity programs in a big company, helping to ensure his employer isn’t discounting people like his sister.  Maybe he’ll become a special ed professional, helping parents like his own navigate the system.  Maybe he’ll do something completely different – but with a lens of compassion and appreciation for those who don’t quite fit in to society like he does.

I cant’ wait to see what he becomes.