forgotten middle child
===== well .... i have had the problem of being a middle child ...
my brother was the genius type ... skipped three grades, straight
A average, perfect 1600 on the SATs, 48 master's credits before
getting his bachelor's degree (having taken 25 units a semester
and having enough time to tutor three other people!!) etc. etc.
and my younger sister ... well ... she's the baby girl the parents
went thru two boys to get and spoiled spoiled spoiled. me???
i had to always fight in my bro's shadow and never coming close
to getting the attention my sis got.
so guess who doesn't ever get talked about?? even though i have
held a steady job (sometimes two or three at a time) my whole life,
and as an outdoor writer closing in on 500 articles published, raised
two kids such that everyone we meet is envious of them (well mannered,
friendly, clean-cut, polite), COOKS (!!!), and married to the same
woman for 26 years, my parents still treat me like the forgotten child.
what i have learned is this ... strive to live to your potential, strive for
a life that is self-satisfying, and forget about other people's approval.
like it was said in the movie "gladiator" ... "the mob is fickle ... a month
from now they will forget his name." you, however, will have to live
with yourself always.