Two Lives, One Special Bond

Sisters Jess and Emily are not just best friends; they also share a love of music, a strong faith and a passion for teaching at the same school in Gippsland. Now they’re about to embark on their most exciting chapter yet as they prepare to welcome their babies into the world.

Jess said, “Em and I have this lovely routine. Every morning at five to eight, Em calls me and we share how we’re feeling, reflect on what’s going on in our lives and then we pray together. It’s such a positive way to start the day.

As a child, I remember I always wanted to be better at drawing like Em. She also had really great fashion sense, especially in high school. I never had the creative flair that she did, it definitely wasn’t my thing. I was so envious that she was taller than me, even though she was a bit younger. I looked up to her, literally.

When I developed type 1 diabetes in my early teens, Em was so supportive. She used to have what we called ‘sympathetic hypos.’ If my levels were low, she’d say, “Oh I feel low too.” She’d then insist on having some of my lollies to feel better.” One day Em even wanted to use the finger prick test on herself and she got teary and said, “I just realised you have to do this every day.” It was so sweet. She’s always had a massive heart.

With only 11 months between us, there are 20 special days each year when we’re actually the same number of years old. We’ve named this time the ‘Festival of the twinage.’ To celebrate, we’ve been seen wearing the exact same clothes to work, which gets plenty of laughs.

As kids, we were obsessed with tennis. We were absolutely convinced we were going to be the next Williams sisters. The problem was, we’d make each other giggle on the court and then that would escalate into hysterical laughter and we’d lose all focus and strength. We gave up on tennis and we ended up becoming the teaching sisters instead. We both love being silly and making our students laugh. We never grew out of that silliness.

Working at the same school has sometimes been hard. If Em is having work related challenges like issues with student behaviour, I feel quite protective of her as her big sister. At times I’ve felt an urge to step in and help, wanting to save her. But Em handles everything so well. She’s incredibly professional.

As a teacher, Em has an amazing ability to see through the masks that children wear. She sees beyond difficult behaviour, to the person » underneath. Em’s students feel safe to be themselves because she just shows so much care. I don’t know anyone who does that as well as she does.

Since kids, we were always actively involved in the church, and worshipping through music was a big part of that. When we sing together in the church band, people can instantly tell we’re sisters. It must be the blood harmonies.

I prayed for Em and her husband Jacob throughout their difficult journey of trying to become parents. It took many years but it’s been so beautiful to see them come out the other side and now expecting a baby soon.

My husband, Josh and I also had to be patient when trying to have a baby, but it was not nearly as long for us. When I saw my positive pregnancy test, I couldn’t quite believe it. I told Josh, my husband and then straight afterwards, I just had to call Em. She was so excited, she yelled back into the phone.

Em has so much energy and joy. She just exudes it.”

Emily said, “I always felt like Jess was my best friend as well as my sister. We both loved music but I played piano and she played guitar. I wonder if we chose different instruments without realising it as a way to make sure we didn’t get competitive with each other, or risk people comparing us.

Jess was always in shorts and I loved dresses, I was one of those girls who loved playing with barbies but Jess would always be outside playing.

I had some difficult times in high school but I knew when I got home, I could talk through my problems with Jess. We didn’t hang out at school together but we could confide in each other after school and that was really special for me.

When Jess got diabetes, she was so positive and resilient. I admired her because she was always pushing herself and stepping up into leadership roles. Even though she can be shy, she’s a natural born leader. When I finished school, I wanted to get into the ministry, which I suppose was unusual for an 18 year old. I needed some life experience first though. I always loved working with youth and helping them and I decided that teaching was the best avenue to do that. When I found out I got the job at the same school as Jess, I was thrilled. We still haven’t had the opportunity to work in the same year level though. Jess inspires her students because she is very enthusiastic and positive with everything she does.

After a year of trying to get pregnant, my partner Jacob and I had a feeling something was wrong, so I went to a doctor. For a long time we had to keep trying and waiting. Then I had surgery and found out I had endometriosis.

More time passed and we had to keep trying. When friends of mine fell pregnant easily, I realised how important it was to have a mindset to deal with it positively. Going to baby showers, I couldn’t help but be reminded of what I didn’t have, but I knew I needed to focus on celebrating a new life with my friends and not allow my own sadness or grief to make me feel bitter. I knew I shouldn’t compare myself to others and that made the burden a lot lighter.

We came to a crossroads where we had to choose whether to try IVF or become foster carers. We couldn’t do both. So we chose to try IVF, which was an emotional decision.

When Jess told me she and Josh were ready to start a family, I had to reassure her that she wasn’t going to have the same infertility struggles. She had a lot of fear that it’d be as difficult for her, thinking that the problem may be genetic. I was so relieved and grateful that wasn’t her path.

I was about 20 weeks pregnant when Jess called me and told me she was expecting too. I just yelled, “This is awesome.” I immediately thought wow! Our kids are going to be so close in age, just like we were growing up. I hope they will have a special relationship like we do because they’re definitely going to be spending a lot of time together.” gl