The Stubborn Othering of Only Children
Why do people get so wigged out over an only child?
As a young child, I asked my parents the usual rigamarole of questions young children ask, including the infamous, “Who do you love more, me or my sister?”
Mom turned to me and said the only correct answer to that question, “I love you both the same.”
Then, I asked, “Why did you have a second child?”
Mom said, “Your father and I realized that only children tend to be weird. So we wanted to have one more.”
And, of course, I held on to that belief, steadfastly thinking this was an ancient truth, an axiom bestowed upon us by god, a case studied repeatedly proven across time.
At age 14, I met a friend, Robert, who was a fellow military brat living in a new city, and who was an only child. I mentioned what my parents told me about only children. He laughed it off — but never let it go. Months later, we were riffing and teasing at each other, and he said, “Oh, is it because I’m an only child?”
I said, “Tisk tisk. Did someone get their feelings hurt?”
We gave each other a hard time, but always respected one another. It was apparent this was a sore subject for him.
