Your first real test at life started the moment your parents thought they needed more people to join the family. In that moment, they set off a slippery slope leading to a host of events that would change your life forever.
If you didn’t experience any of this while growing up as the first child, we doubt it you grew up in a Nigerian home:
The Struggle To Get Your Parent’s Attention
Remember the time you were the only one your parents had to worry about. Good ol’ days, innit? If you thought that would last forever, the arrival of your younger siblings was the rude shock you needed. You probably thought throwing tantrums was going to be the solution, but you realised your place in this new arrangement the first few times they shut you down –rudely, of course.
You Were Expected To Be A Moral Compass
The only thing you wanted to be was a kid, but you had to learn the different variations of responsibility as soon you could. You had to put a lot of thoughts into the most mundane things because apparently, “your brother/sister is watching you.”
You Were Blamed For Pretty Much Everything
There are so many things to talk about here, but let’s stick with the fights your siblings liked to start.
Simply put; younger siblings can be pretty rude. You tried to get along with them as much as possible, but their savagery shone through sometimes. They liked to pick fights with you, even though they knew they had no chance against you. All they had to do was do the fake-cry thing and your parents would direct their pent-up anger about adulting on you, casting you out like the demon you were.
You Were The Unofficial Babysitter
For some reason, your parents thought you were the best choice for this. It would be nice if they paid you, but mountains would become pebbles before that happened. For all they cared, you got paid your due. Didn’t they clothe and feed you?
Your Things Weren’t Really Your Things
Granted, you had to share a lot of space with them. But nothing was as heartbreaking as watching them cart your favourite things and there was nothing you could do about it. It started with the toys and went downhill from there. It never stopped and you couldn’t stop with no matter how hard you tried.
