Random Post 2 - Being a Twin

 From the moment I was born, I had a built in best friend. I've always loved being a twin. My sister and I did everything together, from always partnering together for class activities to squishing into one twin bed to sleep even when we each had our own. Although we were two individual people, we moved in sync, pretty much attached by the hip. We are fraternal twins, born just two minutes apart. We looked pretty similar when we were younger, often getting mixed up by teachers and friends. I would say we had the typical twin upbringing that everyone talks about, matching outfits and all. Throughout my younger years, I always thought that my sister and I were so similar in so many ways like interests, character, and sense of humor. I expected us to be the same for the rest of our lives, but as I've grown older I realized we are still two individual people. 

How humans develop during our teenage years is a topic that has always interested me. I used to assume that because my sister and I were raised by the same parents, in the same house, with the same friends, that we would literally be the same people. But that is the farthest from the truth, and being a twin is no exception. In elementary school, my mom insisted that Chloe and I be placed in the same classes. As a result, we usually had the same friend group and partook in the same extracurricular activities. We both started playing volleyball and became beach volleyball partners for a couple years until my sister decided sports wasn't really for her. We also joined the music program together in middle school, with Chloe learning to play cello, and myself on the piano and french horn. What I'm trying to say, is that we literally chose the same path throughout our early teen years, but we ended up being such different people. 

This difference really became apparent during high school. Our teenage years really are so important when it comes to defining who you are. It's absolutely insane to hear what my sister has to say when we sit down as 21 year old adults and reminisce on certain specifics from our childhood. I was shocked to hear her perspective of our elementary school experience because it differed from mine in so many ways. It was truly eye opening and really got me thinking about how each person perceives the world completely differently. I know it sounds a bit silly because this concept seems so obvious, but I think it is especially interesting in the case of twins. 

Unfortunately, with me moving out of the house for college and with completely different hobbies, my sister and I have grown apart quite a bit. I have faith that as we grow older, it will only bring us closer together, despite our different paths. Although we are very different people now, that uncanny twin telepathy never faded and we still have the same wacky sense of humor. I want to end this story off by saying: don't take your siblings for granted!