Brothers

Two thousand miles of heartland are between us. I’ve always been bad at staying in touch, the same isn’t true of my brother. Eleven weeks ago, the playing field was leveled when I became an uncle. Within the first ten weeks my brother has gone solo for several days with the little guy, been on a road trip over four hours, and last but not least they have already fished together. This should come as no surprise, my brother is no slouch.

Ryan Brutger photos by Steven Brutger

But on a recent phone call we both let our guard down. My kids just went to bed and they had been driving me nuts. My brother was sleep deprived. We both needed a stiff drink. Much of our lives have been comprised of intersecting experiences. But in this moment a cell phone was able to close the gap between us and we shared a new experience. For the first time my brother and I connected as parents.