The “Wild Child”

I would like to say that I am the stereotypical eldest daughter. I crave academic validation, I am going into the medical field in college, I always reach for the highest grade, I enjoy indie music, and I am the daughter who always tries to do her best, even if she’s had a tiring day. My sister, on the other hand, is the complete opposite. arossignol27 is a freshman in high school who has an insane amount of spunk and attitude. She is the definition of the youngest sibling, the “wild child”. I can’t tell you how many times my sister has gotten away with things and been the loud, chaotic, loveable younger sister she is. But I have realized, even with all of the pros that being a younger sister comes with, sometimes it’s not all it’s cracked up to be. 

So what did I do to figure this out? I simply asked her while she was retying her favorite beat up pair of converse.

I simply asked her “Hey arossignol27, what’s the pros of being the younger sister?” Which she replied by saying that she is able to get away with things. She’s treated differently, but in a way that’s almost better. I was the test subject child. I wasn’t allowed to have social media when I was her age, wear ripped jeans, or even be able to go out and do things with friends like she does. She is allowed to do all that, and then some, which she loves to rub in my face. I asked her if there were any other positives about being a younger sister. arossignol27 then said, “You get to drive me around and I don’t have to do anything.” She went on about how she likes to be driven around and enjoys taking drives and listening to music with me. Although I can be “annoying”, I know she loves to hang out with me.

But then I was curious and asked her if there was anything negative about being the younger sister. She said that even though it’s good that I have my license, she doesn’t like that I am always busy and hanging out with my friends. She said she gets a bit lonely, but she is happy I can drive her and her friends around too. arossignol27 also mentioned that because I’m older I get to have different forms of social media that she doesn’t have. But honestly, there are more positives than negatives when it comes to being the younger sister. 

I also asked her the question that I already knew the answer to. “Do you enjoy school or after school activities more?” If you know me, you know that I put a lot of time and effort into assignments, classes, and homework. I always try to get the best grades and just try to do my best. My sister, on the other hand, does not enjoy school. She would much rather spend her time doing something else, anything else. She responded to the question so fast by saying, “School activities.” Her reason? Because they don’t give homework.  

I ended our little converse interview session with one last question. “Do you wish that you were the older sister?” She knew the answer right away. She started to interrupt me by saying, “Sometimes. Because you get to do things like drive and you can hang out with your friends now that you can drive. I wish that I could drive.” She also added that, “I feel like it’s more fun having an older sister because I get to hear all of the stuff that happens in your grade and what happens to you while you are older.” I always wanted to be able to drive and now that I can, I can’t imagine my life without it. But I can understand where arossignol27 is coming from. She knew exactly what her answer was and even though there were the negatives of being the younger sister, she wouldn’t change where she is now. 

Even though I may be the annoying older sister that always checks in asking if she’s done her homework, is doing okay mentally, and making sure she has eaten, after talking with my sister, I can tell that she loves it. Although being the younger sister doesn’t seem appealing to me, she fits the role perfectly.

“Sisters” by Patrick McEvoy-Halston is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0.