by just another voice

Created on: October 11, 2008

If I asked you what your interpretation of an only child is, you would most likely say it is a child in a household or family with no siblings. Technically, this is true. An only child is exactly that: the only child in his or her family. If you were to ask me what my interpretation of an only child is, I'd have to say me or maybe my brother, Timothy. I bet you're sitting there wondering how that can be when I just told you that an only child is the only child in a family, right? Read on and I'll explain.

I was born three years before my brother and far as I can remember, I got everything I needed as a baby. I don't recall being hungry, dirty or sick. I vaguely remember being held and sung to by my mother. I even look back, still today, at pictures from that time and see happy looking parents with me as a newborn, one year old, two and three year old. There are pictures of me with party hats and cake on my face. There are some of me opening what look to be Christmas presents. There are even some marked "first bath", "baby with Grandma" and other cute sayings. Then just before my fourth birthday, the pictures took an odd turn. Instead of them being "ME" and someone or "ME" doing something, they all center around Timothy in some way.

Now the pictures say things like "Timothy and his big sister" or "Baby Timmy with his family". Though throughout the next fourteen or so years, Timothy and I are in a lot of the same pictures, my name is not mentioned once. They even stopped putting my name on the ones of just my parents and I. Where Timothy's photos with Dad say "Timmy and Daddy", mine with Dad say "Daddy and his daughter". When I got old enough to notice the difference and asked about it, Mom just said that since I was the only girl, I should be proud to be referred to as his daughter. This floated for awhile, at least until I started noticing other differences.

I took piano lessons that I didn't like and had to go away to science camp in the summer. Timothy got to play soccer and went to a recreational camp, but ony if he wanted to. Mom and Dad went to all of Timothy's soccer games but never attended any of my recitals. Timmy usually got average grades in school, B's and C's and was always being put into detention. He never got punished for this. I, on the other hand, usually got straight A's and was never in trouble. If I happened to get the rare B on an assignment, I'd be grounded until the next assignment or until I got an A. Being older than Timothy, you'd

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>