I've heard that phrase a lot lately and it makes me sad. Now, I'm not knocking it or trying to offend anyone, so don't get your hackles up. :) I read this article in Time tonight and thought I would share.
I'm an only child. My parents tried for almost 2 years to get pregnant with me. They were on the verge of starting fertility treatments (no small feat for a young couple in the 70's) when they turned up prego with yours truly. After I was born, my mom became pregnant 3 more times and miscarried all 3 babies. Devastating for her, as you can imagine.
Growing up, I wanted a sibling soooo badly. I didn't even care if it was a boy or a girl. Granted, we lived out in the country (and I mean, OUT- my school, grades K-12, was housed in a series of trailers). But I had close friends and we saw them a lot. I just wanted a brother or sister. BAD. As I got older, around 10 or so I imagine, I decided it wasn't so bad to be the only.
Now that I'm much older, I long for a sibling. It can nearly bring me to tears. Does that sound silly to those of you with siblings? Well, here's my thought. When my parents are gone, it's just me. Yes, I'm married to a wonderful man. And yes, I have two beautiful children who are the light of my life. But they don't know the me that was 7 and crawled in the dog house with Brandy and her puppies. They don't know the me that moved to AR and cried for weeks. They don't know the me that almost didn't make the cheer squad in 8th grade. They don't know the me who hated high school but cried through the entire graduation. They don't know the me who made so many mistakes and had so many good times and cried and laughed. A sibling would. And a sibling would know what I'm feeling when my mom and dad are gone.
Do I sound morbid? I'm not trying to, I promise. My parents have both had serious health problems. My mom cannot do anything about hers. She can manage it, but no cure. That means a shortened life span. My mom and I are super close, and I can't even think about that.
I'm tired from leading 11 kindergarteners around VBS for 3 hours this week, so maybe I'm just feeling extra emotional. But when am I not? ;)
I would love to hear your thoughts, even if they're different than mine!
While you're on a blog roll, check out Megan's post on friendship. I haven't commented yet, I'm still fermenting mine. :)
Have a great day!
