Jimmie was born in Shidler, Oklahoma, on his grandparent's farm. Billy was already two years old, and the two formed a lifelong bond. On the farm, there were cows and chickens, and eggs to collect. But the hens pecked at Jimmie's hands. He figured out that he could use a board to lift the hens, and that protected his hands. His grandmother did not approve.

Jimmie went to kindergarten in Tulsa, at Emerson, where his teacher was Mrs. Tripplehorn, mother of actress Jeanne Tripplehorn. On his first day at school, he left and came home. Billy followed him. As he told Mom, he couldn't let him go by himself.

The family moved to Bartlesville, then back to Tulsa where Jimmie attended John Burroughs Elementary. When they finally settled in Bartlesville Jimmie started 4th grade at McKinley Elementary. He followed the standard path, Central Jr. High, and College High School.

Billy was captain of the football team. For Jimmie this was more than a source of pride; it meant no one would pick on him. I came along about this time, and I remember watching them go off to school. After school, they often took me with them to movies and ball games. They were the best brothers I could have ever had.

During this time, OU Coach Bud Wilkinson came to our house to recruit Billy. Billy signed with OU, but he left for the University of Kansas, where he played football until he suffered an injury to his hand. He was told if he injured his hand again he would lose the use of it. As his passion was art, he gave up football, and got his degree.

Jimmie went to Bartlesville Business College after high school. This was during the war in Vietnam, and Jimmie was drafted into the army, doing basic training at Fort Polk, Louisiana. Typing skills got him a position as a clerk in the Criminal Investigation Department. He went into the Army Reserves. I missed my older brother. Almost 40 years later, Jimmie and I were sitting in a theater watching Mel Gibson in We Were Soldiers. I suddenly turned to him and rattled off his serial number. I hadn't thought about it in almost 40 years.

After that he worked at the Coca Cola bottling plant, Jones and Laughlin Supply Company, and later at Gunn Brothers Stamp Store (a rival of Green Stamps). But Jimmie was also interested in art.

Meanwhile, Billy had graduated from KU, and returned to Bartlesville to teach at College High School. In the early years, he coached and taught history and economics as needed. But his passion was art; he taught that until he retired. I still meet former students who tell me how great he was.

Jimmie's career finally intersected with his love of drawing when the Cities Service Oil Company hired him. Here, he worked his way into his dream job as a graphic artist. When Cities moved to Tulsa, Jimmie moved with them. After a series of name changes, Cities Service, Citgo, Occidental Petroleum, Jimmie was downsized. Using his severance package, he took a drafting course at Platt College, and got a PC.

Jimmie browsed the phone book for a job. He got on at Saint Francis Hospital in the education department, making posters, maps, illustrations, and slides for doctors and nurses. He worked there from 1990 till he retired in 2009. Typical of Jimmie, he gave up his job to save another's job. He said, "I can retire if it will let one of the others stay."

In retirement, Jimmie was free to enjoy movies and eating out. We came to know the staff at our favorite restaurants, and they often spoiled us. I think his favorite meal was breakfast. He liked all kinds of movies, but he was partial to Westerns. I would think that's where he got some of his moral code. But then I remember the influence of Mom. Ruth was strong and she never compromised her values. And as Billy had looked after him, he always looked after me. We often thought the same thing at the same time, independently. We fought like brothers. And like brothers it was us against the world. When Mom died, twenty years before, Jimmie, Billy, and I grieved together. When Billy died, two years to the month before Jimmie, it was just the two of us.

And then there was one. I am who I am because of them. Jimmie taught me to ride a bike and to drive, and how to drive defensively and with courtesy. Billy gave me books, taught me chess, and played it with me. I sought counsel from both of them. Now, armed with all they gave to me, I am a better man, for they are still with me