They fight, they scream, they kiss, they hug, and on a scary night they huddle up together. Life without a sibling can be quite boring and trust me when I say, “They just cannot sit without fighting and constantly nudging each other”.
If you have been on the fence for having a second child because life is going to be on a standstill again and the sleepless nights will return, well you are right. But don’t be myopic about it. Think long term. As a child growing up in a family with 3 elder sisters, I was spoilt but I grew up as a secure individual. For me, relationships weren’t fragile. I knew if I didn’t trade my favourite pencil with a friend I would still have a friend waiting for me back home.
As you grow older, you realise that friends are constant but siblings become your pillar because they are so rooted in your being. They know you more than anyone and they bat the world just for you.
Increasingly as we raise our kids in a virtual world where everything seems prettier than it is, I truly believe that relationships will grow to be more fragile and bonds are the only thing that will remain.
Things I Most Definitely Considered Before My Second One Were:
– Can I afford it? Raising a kid is expensive today.
– What’s my work plan? One parent has to slow down and are you as a family ready for it?
– Am I ready to do it all over again? Most definitely this one bothers us the most but it’s a lot easier the second time around.
Things You Overthink:
How can I manage two? It’s so easy because they are always together. You never have to plan a playdate, never worried about a rainy day or an ad-hoc school day off. They always have someone to play with on holidays and at hours when you just want to be.
Benefits:
– They are secure
– They share
– They learn life skills of persuasion, cooperation, competition and more importantly compassion.
My kids are as different as night and day, but they can’t stay without each other for more than a few hours. Are your kids also like that? Can’t live with – can’t live without! story of our lives. Below is a memory that I wanted to share just before Rakshabandhan, which most definitely is no longer just the celebration of the bond between a brother and sister but in reality and in the modern era, it is the celebration of sibling relationships. So help them enjoy them.
KSP Team
Rati Ramadas Girish
