Telling Stories With My Brother

On June 13, my brother married his beautiful bride, Grace, in Tiburon, CA. The day was filled with beauty, love, joy, laughter, tears, and so many blessings. During the reception, I gave a speech for the newlyweds. I would love to share it with you!

Hi everyone! I’m Elizabeth, Steven’s younger sister, and I am a storyteller.

Over the last few years, I’ve come to use this word to describe myself. It is a thread that weaves through my professional and personal life: publishing a book, sharing stories online, and telling bedtime stories to my goddaughter Tori, the beautiful flower girl. For as long as I can remember, I have loved telling stories.

But it wasn’t until I was looking back at home videos, preparing for this speech, that I realized where this love of storytelling came from—my big brother Steven. For years, Steven told stories—and I was his sidekick.

In the beginning, the stories were just for us. As a little girl, I found myself following after Steven, going wherever his imagination led us. When he strapped on reindeer ears, I put on a Santa hat. He pulled me behind him and directed me to deliver toys around our small house. A few years later, when he hopped on his scooter with a briefcase in hand, I followed him to our guest house, or as we called it, “the office,” where we pretended to be Intel employees and “typed” out emails on our paper computers.

When we were in elementary school, we started performing for our parents. Every room in our house was a stage. We acted out puppet shows, lip sync performances, and numerous skits with questionable storylines and silly costumes. Each time, our parents, exhibiting unfathomable patience, met us with enthusiastic applause.

In middle school and high school, we leveled up our storytelling. Suddenly, we were amateur filmmakers, creating masterpieces like Camp Ninja and Spy Wars with our friends, and the Pletcher rendition of Frozen at our family reunion. Many of you here today were involved in the making of these movies. Together, Steven and I filmed, directed, and edited the movies, adding dramatic music and sound effects. Steven loved choreographing the fight scenes. But even more than that, he loved bringing people together to create something we were proud of

.When Steven went to college and later to New York, he continued to tell stories, just in a different way. He told them over phone calls or holiday breaks, painting pictures of his many adventures—running through the Wheaton snow wearing nothing but his boxers and shoes, befriending strangers on trains and in pubs throughout Europe, sliding down river canyons in Switzerland, scuba diving in Thailand, and hosting rooftop gatherings in New York. He told stories with enthusiasm, gratitude, and a hint of dramatic flair (which he learned from Mom).

And then one day, I sat across the table from Steven, and he was quieter than normal. Rather than telling stories, he sat proudly beside a beautiful young woman named Grace, as she did the storytelling. Steven was so excited for his family to get to know her that he kept encouraging her to tell us more stories from her life. Whether she was talking about her family’s devotion to the Chicago Bears or her wild adventures abroad, she spoke with a zest for life and a deep love for her friends and family. With each story she told, it was clear why Steven adored Grace. She was funny and brave and strong and smart. You could see it all over his face—he was in love.

Steven, as I look back at our childhood together, I am so grateful you were my big brother, my playmate, my partner in crime, and my co-storyteller. I see now that stories were how we expressed our emotions and connected with each other. They were how we made sense of the world—and how we discovered and spread joy. How beautiful it is to realize that you introduced me to the thing I love doing most in the world.

And now, here you are—stepping into a new story with a new storyteller by your side.

Steven, it has been a joy to tell so many stories with you. Grace, now it’s your turn.

A heartfelt thank you to our amazing photographer, Ryan Michaels, for capturing these special moments.

Share