Characteristics Of An Only Child

Only and Lonely
In the 1970’s, growing up as an only child; I was somewhat of an enigma to my classmates. I can’t recall anyone else in my grade school who was also an only child. In a sense, I was a minority. My parents would grow weary of me, relentlessly begging them for a sister or brother. Enduring intense periods of loneliness caused me to decide very early in life that I would never only have one child. Admittedly, because I grew up in a house of only one kid, I knew I would have at least three kids. “The only child is automatically stigmatized. When asked to describe personality characteristics of an only child, many people will respond negatively, indicating the presupposition that only children are spoiled brats.” (1) The behavior I exhibited as a young child fit this description to a tee. I learned early on how to

He had grown up hating having to wear his older brothers hand-me downs. One year they were so poor; they ate most of their meals out of their grammar school’s dumpster. He wanted to make sure his offspring didn’t have to grow up in poverty. In his mind, the only way to achieve this was; by only having one child. I explained my yearning for at least 3 children. As a compromise, we decided on two kids. Because of the loneliness I felt as a child without siblings, this compromise satisfied me because at least 2 is better than 1.
Being an only child didn’t have much of an impact on my life when I was in my 20’s and 30’s. I suppose it was nice for my children, since they were the only grandchildren in the family. They definitely got doted on. It would have been fun to have a sibling who had kids. I don’t have any real nieces or nephews. Of course, I have family members that I refer to as nieces and nephews. They aren’t my blood relatives, however and I image the bond would be stronger if they