As the middle child you are always portrayed to have the worst position in a family. The middle child is often synonymous with "the forgotten child" or "the least favorite" or the one who "acts out for attention." As the seventh child of 11 children I have to disagree and I want you to know that you have the best seat in the house. I've always loved being the middle child and despite what everyone else says you should too.
1. You learn what not to do from your older siblings.
The older siblings, especially the oldest, are always the first to make mistakes and get the harshest punishments. One of two things are learned from that. One, you look at the situation and decide that you're better than getting yourself into such a predicament; or two, you learn where they messed up and you perfect the scheme. In other words, you actually learn how to get away with most things, and that's what's really important.
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2. You're the most responsible with the least amount of responsibility.
The cycle begins with your older siblings watching over you and then passing this responsibility to you. You know all of the ins and outs to the house and caretaking. Luckily for you, though, your parents don't expect as much from you because you aren't the "leader" or the one they left in charge. Congrats, you're already prepared to handle more than you have to handle. This translates into the real world where you develop a natural sense of responsibility so you're ready to take on almost anything.
3. You're more observant.
A lot of middle children are written off as shy or in the background. This may be true, but the upside to not always having the spotlight is the ability to sit back and watch everything. Trust me, the middle child knows everything!
4. You get what you want.
With the oldest children wanting the newest and most expensive and trendy items and the baby being, well, the baby, anything the middle child desires is measly in comparison. A $40 video games sounds like a charity donation compared to when your brother asked for a $200 concert ticket. *Bonus if you don't complain about hand-me-downs.
5. If you're mediocre it's fine.
Nobody seems to expect much from the middle child so anything good you do is great and as long as you don't mess up drastically, you're all good!
6. Your problem solving skills are important.
There's always a lot of tension or back and forth in the family, between the older ones and the parents, the younger ones and the older ones, or just everybody. As the middle child, you're often the buffer. From a young age you learn how to deal with all groups of people and how to remain calm in situations where everybody else loses their tops. The appreciation of that skill comes with age.
7. You end up making the most money.
You learn how to budget when you realize that you can't always get the newest clothes because, well, hand-me-downs. You start to save money in attempts to supply your own materialistic values, and learn that you have to make money to get what you want.
8. You're creative.
Whether you draw or write or scheme you're probably the most creative person in your family. Personally, I think this ties into finding a peaceful outlet after helping everyone else through family chaos. Either way, your creative thoughts and expressions are what make you more unique.
9. You're an overall good person.
Somewhere between learning everything about everyone and always helping make peace you find a balance, and that balance makes you a better person. You could use what you know against everybody to get what you want, but you don't. Your oldest brother is already the backyard bully and your little sisters is the cute whiny spawn of Satan. You love them, but you don't want to be like either of them. Sometimes you hate that you feel obligated to be the better child, but that's the curse gift of being the golden middle child!
10. You're the favorite.
Even if your oldest sibling is a good child, any mistake they make is an uncushioned blow to the reality that they'll never live up to be the child your parents wanted. Your younger sibling gets more gifts and get away with everything, but really your parents just want them and their ungrateful whining to go away; but you, most grateful and calming child in the middle, are the true favorite. You may not get all of the praise openly, but your parents appreciate you. They know that you're the glue to the family. You help keep them sane and the household in tact. You are their true star, don't you ever forget it!
