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Picture this: you’re the older brother of a little brother that has a passion for something that could very well lead to him running his own business someday.

Now take it one step further. Your little brother actually started his own business and is now your boss. He’s the one that cuts your checks and looks over your shoulder to make sure you’re doing the job correctly.

You begin to wonder if you’re dreaming. You think to yourself, ‘How is it possible that the goofy little kid I grew up with is a business owner?’

Well, it turns out you’re not dreaming. Or at least I’m not dreaming, as that is in fact what my life is like right now.

My little brother is my boss.

For all you older brothers out there that can’t fathom the idea of working for your little brother, I am here to tell you it isn’t that bad. I mean, it’s not every day that you get to spout off and talk crap right to your boss’s face with no punishment.

All jokes aside, it has been quite an experience working for him this summer. He’s the owner of the food truck, Mac Shack, that has been busy all throughout southeastern Minnesota and northern Iowa.

As nice as it is for a new business – especially a food truck – to stay busy throughout the summer, I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t a point of contention within our family. We’ve always been summer vacationers, so when we got the schedule for this summer, it came as a surprise to see very few days off, let alone weeks.

But hey, that truck has to get paid off somehow.

In the early days of the summer season, it appeared as though a summer vacation was not in the cards for the Nelson family. But as the weeks went on, and we traveled to towns we’d spent very little time in, I could sense my family’s feelings starting to change. Or at least my own feelings started to change. 

Now, each time we travel to a location, it feels like a mini vacation. Especially the drives to Lanesboro and Fountain, Minnesota, where we get to experience the rolling hills and winding roads that make for nice scenic views. We get to experience the people from all of these little towns and the business owners that work to keep their local shops up and running.

Despite the mini road trips with the Mac Shack, knowing that it would be difficult to get away for a family vacation was not an easy pill to swallow. It’s basically a tradition at this point. So, my mom did the thing that every mom is a pro at. She told her child what to do.

The running joke in the Mac Shack is that “Mac isn’t the boss, Mom is.” I wouldn’t say that’s necessarily true, but in the case of wanting a vacation, my mom got her way.

I’d be lying if I said I never saw this happening to my brother. Ever since I ate his food and heard the word “food truck” escape his mouth, I knew that there was potential there. I’m just happy to be along for the ride.

I suppose the moral of the story is that even silly little brothers grow up someday and are suddenly mature. You look at them one day and see a man, rather than a little boy. Of course, sometimes they act too mature and suddenly it sounds like a good idea to try and pin them to the ground like you did when you were kids. Obviously, that’s a fight I’d still win. Because little brothers never stop being little brothers.

Lyle’s own Jed Nelson is the Austin Daily Herald’s intern for the summer.