O.C.S. (Only Child Syndrome)

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Graphic by: Jordan Lodge | Production Manager

I hear my Ferris State friends often talk about something their brother or sister had done to really get their blood boiling and it reminds me just how nice it is to be the only child.

With the holiday season finally upon us as we stroll into December, that feeling of being the only child becomes even greater. As a kid, I used to always love walking down the stairs on Christmas morning and looking at all the presents, knowing I didn’t have to share a single gift.

Now you may be thinking, “Wow, those definitely sound like the words of someone who was a spoiled little only child,” and I suppose you may be right in some ways. But just think about all the arguments I’ve avoided, black eyes I’ve dodged and cuddles with Grandma I’ve hogged up.

This may not seem as relevant now that I’m 22 and graduating from college in 2017 but I think only lone children know that you never stop being the only child.

Though, there may have been times as a child where I sat in my room playing PlayStation One and thinking just how nice it would be to have one more person pick up the controller and play Crash Bandicoot’s “Crash Team Racing” with me.

There were also times where throwing the baseball up in the air and trying to hit it before it fell would have been much easier had I had a sibling to throw the ball to me instead.

I think the biggest downfall of being the only child is that you have to learn to compete in a different type of way than those with siblings.

Learning to compete is a very real and necessary thing, especially as you get older and realize that even though you were the only one around growing up, you’re not the only one who’s reaching for that same job that you are.

Some kids have cousins they compete with, some kids play sports to find their competitive edge, and some just never have to deal with it until it’s thrown at them.

It was a combination of both that made me learn at an early age that this sweet life as an only child wasn’t going to last forever.

But being an only child is a pretty cool way to grow up. The only “siblings” competing for love are the dog and the cat (I’ll take those odds), your mom can focus on making only one PB&J and Grandma’s cookies taste a lot better when you get to have them all to yourself.