What It Means To Be Number Two

                                                                                                                                         

                                                                                                   

 

Sadly we live in a world where being Number One means being the best to most people.  So what does it mean when you start off in second place.  Does this mean you will never be as good as Number One?  Will you always be in the shadow of the one who was born before you?  

This distinction we share my little Me Too along with your Mom.  We were not the first-born and like you we each had an older brother that learned things before we did. We watched as he was allowed to do things before we were.  Sometimes he seemed to shadow our accomplishments just because he had done it first.

Being Number Two I believe has certain advantages and disadvantages.  One of the disadvantages is that you will always be compared to your older brother.  Yet on the other hand he has broken the trail and made the path easier for you to follow.  You will learn first hand what second hand means.  However I believe this gives you an appreciation for something when it is brand new.  

You will emerge almost immediately as your own personality develops and without even trying you will be distinct and different in many ways.  In time you will branch off and develop interests and learn skills that will set you apart.  You will stop thinking of yourself as being Number Two or second best.  Usually the hero-worshiping stops and you begin to see yourself as an equal when you become an adult.  It is then that the tables begin to turn and you see the advantages of being younger as you watch and hopefully learn from the successes and failures your brother makes.  Unfortunately this does not make you immune from partaking in both of these dimensions yourself. 

 

                   Cheryl C. Helynck

                           2001

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