"Twinship"

I have an identical twin sister. My sister and I were born only five minutes apart and we shared a room from birth until I got married. We were best friends growing up, and we dressed alike until we were ten years old, alternating who picked our clothes out every other day. We also participated in our share of twin antics on occasion.

My mom got the same question over and over when we were little girls.."Are they twins? " I remember that even as a five or six year old this seemed like a dumb question to me.

We looked exactly alike, same clothes, same hair style, same size.....not rocket science. I wish that my mom had just once pointed to one of us and said something like "no they're not twins, I cloned that one."

It is still funny to me, however,that we carry the label "identical" considering we are almost nothing alike. We have some similarities such as; our voices sounding alike, having some mannerisms that are the same, and of course, as I mentioned before, we look alike.

My sister and I differ greatly in personality as well as our preferences for recreational activities.
This was as true when we were children as it is today. She wanted to do things like play softball and basketball, and all I wanted was some pom-poms.

This would not have been a problem except for the fact that if one of us wanted to do something my mom signed us both up. Oh yes! We were a pair and we came as a set under any and all circumstances.

The first thing I remember my mother asking us if we wanted to do was join the Brownies. Brownies are a young level of Girl Scouts. When I learned there were little brown dresses, pins, hats, ties, and meetings as well as arts and crafts, it was YES for me.

Mom signed us up, and I loved it. We participated for a few years becoming Girl Scouts, complete with green dresses, sashes, and all the badges we cared to earn.

I had only one close call to a bad experience while I was a Girl Scout and that came when we went on a camping trip. I was initially very excited . I packed my bag with all of the things on the list I was given, including my new sleeping bag, and got in the car.

Everything was going great until I actually got my first look at the accommodations for sleeping and showering. I am not sure what I expected to find upon my arrival but I will tell you that when I got the visual I was stunned.

I immediately called my mother from a pay phone and reported that the conditions were unacceptable. I mean...an open air, no door, very public shower with a pull chain...they must have been kidding. I also informed her that we had passed a Holiday Inn right before we arrived at the camp site and that I would be needing a room.

I know...close call right. My mother rescued me and transported me back and forth for the daily activities. I have since decided that this doesn't make me a bad person, it's just simply that the "roughing it" type camping isn't for everyone.

I appreciate the outdoors now, but a cabin with a private bathroom and a bed to sleep in is as close to "camping" as I care to get.

Other than the camping thing I enjoyed the time I spent as a Girl Scout, but, I feel pretty confident in saying my sister wasn't loving the whole experience.

The next activity we signed up for was my sisters choice. So before I knew how it happened I was on a softball team. I got a uniform, cleats, and a glove, but one thing that I didn't have was a clue.

I had no idea what to do, so each and every time I heard the coaches say someone would have to sit out my hand went up like they had requested volunteers. I can also tell you that they never refused my offer. This was due to my lack of athletic ability I'd venture to guess.

My twin was an all-star player and she earned many iron on stars for her hat. These were awarded for great plays and hits. I earned myself one little star when during one of our games I was playing out in the field and a pop fly accidentally found its way into my glove. Evidently my coaches thought I had something to do with it landing there and who was I to argue?

By seasons end, after frequently "riding the pine" my nylon shorts had more knots and picks in them than a chenille bedspread.

After suffering through the softball experience the next activity was mine to choose. Yep you guessed it....it was pom pom time. I loved cheering and I'm sure I drove our mother insane with my practicing cheers and splits and all of that. We did the recreation cheering thing and we were on the pep squad at our middle school.

I feel pretty sure my sister wanted to kill me when all of that was said and done, and in retrospect I can't say that I would have blamed her. I probably needed killing.

Another thing my mom always insisted on was that we remain in the same classes throughout elementary school, and so we did. Several teachers and principals let her know that in their professional opinions she was making a huge mistake, but she stuck to her demands and they were forced to comply.

I have since read several research studies done by prominent doctors and other professionals, regarding twins, that show my mother was right. It seems they have learned that separating twins from both their parents and their twin sibling when they go to school causes the children to experience double separation anxiety...(Thank you Mom!)

As we were growing up we shared much more than our bedroom. We shared each others joy and pain. We knew, and still do know, when something is wrong with the other one.

I have such a closeness with my twin sister it's almost as if even when we aren't together I can feel her with me. That sounds odd I am sure, but that's just how it is.

Over the years we had the normal sibling arguments, and we both went through a great deal for the sake of the other ones wants.

We have shared our true feelings about our adolescent years since we've become adults and we laugh at how tortured we felt during some of our "extra curricular activities", but neither one of us carries an ounce of regret. We wouldn't change it, even if we were given the choice.

We have decided that we are just better and more well rounded people for having traveled through the experiences the other one chose. We not only learned from one another, we also know that for each other's happiness, it was well worth the trip...