My brother was two years older than me. I had substance abuse issues growing up but I didn't have children so it was ok becauseI was only hurting myself. My brother was the perfect one. He was in a relationship with a girl that was abusive, domineering, and down right nasty to mybrother which kept my brother drinking. My sister-in-law got mad one day and hit his head on the ground and after that my brother had seizures. He became unable to work and drank daily which I think contributed to his passing. I was trying to help him get out of the abusive relationshipand he had agreed to leave his wife and come back home to Tennessee from New Mexico. He never made it. He decided to stop drinking to come home and had a seizure as a result and went to heaven on September 19, 2009. Our mother and other family members have had a hard time coping with his passingbut we find solace in knowing that he is away from his abusive wife.