Twins are similar, except for when they’re different
DOUBLE TROUBLE FOR A FIRST TIME DAD OF TWINS
“Why didn’t we just drive here?” Thomas asked after an hour of hiking in light drizzle.
“This is a walk, fresh air, countryside, it’s supposed to be fun and not completed in a car,” I explained in a bid to convince both him and me.
“How much further?” came Thomas’ answer as he ignored my defence of our day out, in a determined bid to make his feelings about our family walk clear.
“Nearly at the car park,” I answered in an upbeat way, as Thomas lowered his head, dragged his feet and groaned.
In a pleasant contrast to this negativity, Emma was repeatedly jogging up a muddy hill adjacent to the path and sliding back down, as if in training for an event.
“Working on your fitness?” I asked casually and she informed me Conner in her class had won the family park run. She went on to say she always beats him racing in the playground.
I tried to explain it was just a fun way of exercising in groups rather than a race, but she was adamant he’d won, and given I’d never done one, I bowed to her knowledge.
More striking than her determination to end Conner’s dominance of a fun family event, was how she was training, in preparation to take him down.
It brought home how she holds a very different view of physical exertion and competitiveness to her brother.
Thomas enjoys bikes, scooters, but there does seem to be a limit for him, whereas she will push herself and insist everything was a race.
I remember the school Santa dash, where I had to intervene to stop her jogging around the playground, when she’d done the allotted distance and both Thomas, and I stood watching her overtake “bigger boys”.
She’d also signed up to afterschool football, whereas he hadn’t, because he likes to finish school at 3.30pm and return to a snack, warm house, and his projects.
His work involves large scale Lego construction of social housing, based on his own drawings, to accommodate a variety of soft toys. They’re twins who share similarities but are intrinsically different in many ways.
And it’s great how they both bring something different to the party, even if we’ll need to plan time to accommodate football, park runs and construction club.
The only problem I can see with these competing interests is I’ll never watch what I want on TV again, once we’re finished arguing over getting to watch Grand Designs (Thomas), Match of the Day (Emma), Great British Bake Off (Victoria) and 24 Hours in Police Custody (me).
It’s great how they both bring something different to the party
the other wants his Lego