While I am going into my final year of undergrad, my sister will be completing her final year of middle school. We are nine years apart, and sometimes that can be hard. We disagree on a lot, she prioritizes different things than I do, but we're still sisters. We do sisterly things, and even though we don't always agree, we still love each other.
So, here are 10 things anyone with a sibling in a different life stage knows.
1. You get to watch them grow up
With a large age difference, you get to watch them figure things out and go through the stages of life you've already completed. You can offer your eternal wisdom and see the kind of person they grow into.
2. It can be hard to relate to them
A downside to the big age difference, it can be hard to relate to your sibling. Their middle and high school drama doesn't compare to the things you go through in college or even in your high school days.
3. Their middle school experience is very different from yours
When you went to middle school, everyone looked rough and fashion was non-existent. Now, if girls don't wear makeup, there's something wrong with them. You didn't wear makeup until junior year of high school, and still, rarely wear it. But she does her eyebrows and hair every day.
4. They still beg you to play with them
If your sibling still plays with dolls or action figures, they still beg you to play with them. It doesn't matter how busy you are, they will constantly ask until you finally concede. But you lowkey enjoy it, as long as they don't know that.
5. Your room will become theirs when you move out
I have the biggest room of my siblings, and my sister already has paint pallets, furniture, and a whole blueprint picked out when I move out of the house next year. She's very eager and excited to take over my room.
6. They follow you everywhere
My sister follows me everywhere. I go into my room, she's up there minutes later. I sit on the couch she's leaning against me and we're sharing a cushion. There is no such thing as personal space with a younger sibling.
7. Anything you don't want, they take
When I got a new laptop, I didn't know what to do with my old one. She immediately took it. I want to sell my old iPod touch, but my sister has had her eyes on it for years. She had a habit of going into my room and taking my things when she was younger, and she still does.
8. They show off in front of your friends
I've been friends with my BFFs for decades, and my sister still shows off in front of them. There's no need for her to do that, but she must have her presence known. She's getting better, but it used to be so annoying.
9. You get to live vicariously through them
I'm excited to see my sister attend her first homecoming, winter formal, and prom. I want to see her experience all of the joys of high school, so long as she skips the drama I had.
10. You wouldn't want it any other way
Yeah, the age difference can be tough, but I wouldn't want it to be different. If my mom had a boy or had a third child three years earlier, everything would be different. And I think it's pretty perfect as is.
