Being the first child

Just like the parents, the first child is nothing short of a vice-parent , if there's anything like. in the absence of the parents, you get to assume the role of the mom and dad and alot of sacrifices has to be made.

Contrary to what alot of people assume, i think there's nothing particularly powerful about being a first born. It's just the numerous responsibilities and expectations that makes it appears so. But no doubt it's a great previledge to be the first fruit of your parents.

Years ago when I was in elementary school, I got into a fight with a bigger girl who beat me silly. My elder sister did her best to console me on our way home, but I continued to cry. As soon as mum was told about what happened in school, mom was so furious that she started screaming at elder sister. " Why couldn't you fight for your younger sister?". As a matter of fact, I was the one that went looking for trouble 😆 but Mom didn't care, she was only angry that my elder sister couldn't protect me when I needed her the most especially when we were in thesame school. This made elder sister began to cry and I felt sorry for her.

Growing up, I had more clothes and shoes than my elder sister. This was because she always allowed me to have some of her clothes which were no longer her size. Sometimes I could decide to put on her new clothes but she wouldn't wear mine. What belongs to my elder sister belongs to me too and what belongs to me was mine alone 😁

I also observed that the elder sister is always given a more severe punishment whenever we arrive at school late , even when I was the cause of the late coming. Most times, I feel very lazy to get up from bed no matter how much my sister screamed. Unlike my sister, I don't rush my breakfast even when it's obvious that we are running late, and I also do not walk as fast. But I guess the the discipline master doesn't care. He or she would always hold the eldest sibling responsible.

In my country, all eyes are always on the first child of every family. Infact there's this myth by religious folks that says the first born children are always under some sort of "spiritual attack" due to the special previledge and blessings that the creator has bestowed on the first fruits of the family. So as a first child, you are always adviced by clerics and your parents to be prayerful and draw close to God always. You just can't afford to be foolish or make silly mistakes because as the first child, your parents invested alot of time and resources in your training, education and development.

Even if you end up making mistakes, you are expected to never fall again into the temptation as your siblings are expected to learn from such mistakes so that they would come easy of what you have suffered and labored for. This is a moral burden that most firstborns are aware of and they gladly carry it during the growing period of their lives.

The expectations are always doubled if the first born child is a male from a struggling family. Everyone starts looking forward to you as the future millionaire who will take the family out of it's misery. Sometimes you would feel as if it's only God that's on your side. This is because everyone is already of the opinion that you have got everything figured out, that's if you are the responsible type. You just have to continue to work hard and pray for the grace of God not to disappoint your loved ones. Life might appear very difficult when one or both parents are late and the responsibility on the first son becomes tripled. The society immediately expects you to be a "man". For a teenager or a young adult, this could be quite scary, especially when most of the people urging you on are not as eager to help.

Seen alot of first borns who had delayed their marriage and literally put their lives on hold so they could help their siblings achieve their ambitions just they the souls of the late parents be pleased with them.

But ofcourse there are also a lot of previledge advantages that a fist child gets to enjoy ahead of the other siblings. They are always the pride of their parents and a pillar of the family. There's this natural and automatic respect that my elder sister always commands from the family and even the extended family. You always get the lion share and your opinion have to considered first before a decision could be reached as regards to family matters. Infact in some cultures in my country. The first born will be the one to inherit all the properties of the late parents and then decide how he would share it to his younger siblings who have no choice than to respect his decision.

DISCLAIMER

Pls I am not saying that life is particularly unfair to the first born child. If you are a first child who's probably thinking in that range based in some unpleasant occurences in the past, you are advised to drop such a negative mentality. You all would agree with me that everyone encounters life's difficulties regardless of their ranking in the family. So long as you remained focused and believe in yourself, you would definitely achieve your goals and live the fulfilled life that you desire.

God bless all the firstborns and continue to elevate them . You shall forever be the head and not the fiddle wherever you find yourself.

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