The Trouble With Being Last In Line

I recently copied this quote from an article I was reading online about birth order: “and the youngest tends to be the most creative and wildest of the group.” Since Brenda and I are both the last born in our families, this phrase made me stop and think.

I wouldn’t call myself creative, although others have. I feel like I get most of my ideas from others and just incorporate them into my own. Brenda, however, I would say is definitely imaginative and resourceful all on her own. If I described her house with its color combinations, you would probably think the affect would be rather bizarre. But it’s not; the overall result is very attractive and unique. She could have easily had a career in interior decorating, but she chose to concentrate on the other side of her brain instead.

Brenda can also cook in the gourmet style; she’s not crazy about turning out the ordinary everyday stuff, but if she decides to have a party, the creative side comes out in full force. She will spend hours on a cake shaped like a hat (for Easter, for example) decorated with all kinds of flowers, usually real. And the appetizers she whips up are to die for. I could and would hire her as a caterer if she decided to do this full time.

So I’ll agree with the first adjective to describe Brenda, but “wild” is not one I would affix to either one of us. Oh, we both like to kick up our heels and have a good time, but “wild” sounds over the top. We just have a rebellious streak sometimes that usually shows up when someone tells us we “have to do something.” Those are just naturally fighting words to us.

She and I have been trying all our lives to be unique, different from our older siblings so we will be noticed, I suppose, first by our parents, then by others. And this tendency to oppose authority or certain conventions has gotten us into trouble.

In Brenda’s case, however, I see a real strength emerging from her struggles. She has learned coping skills that many adults never acquire, and this has helped her in dealing with any problems that arise as a single mother of two teenagers.

The genius and I are very proud of her accomplishments and immensely admire her perseverance in dealing with the difficulties in her life.