The First Born

November 26, 1997 A daughter is born To a family of four Immediately thrust into a competition with the first born Who she soon learned to abhor. November 26, 1998 The daughter turns one, blissfully unaware of her grandmother's cruel words: "She will never measure up," she said, "To her older sister," "the first born." November 26, 1999 The year she turned two, she remained oblivious to her family's bittersweet love for her sister, the first born. November 26, 2000 The year she turned three, she began to see, that her sister was the one they cared for, that she would never be able to amount to as much as her sister, the first born. November 26, 2001 She turned four that year Her family picked up and moved, leaving their old home behind, like a tree uprooted from the earth. And still, she competed for the love of her parents, with her sister, the first born. November 26, 2002 The daughter turned five. A year into school, her teachers raved. "She is incredibly smart," they said, "She will go far." And yet, there she was. Competing for her parents love, with her sister, the first born. November 26, 2003 In her sixth year, she began to despise, the rivalry between herself and her sister, the first born. November 26, 2004 She turned seven that year, and, although she spent her days playing games outside, she couldn't help but notice, that her parents invariably compared her, to her sister, the first born. November 26, 2005 That year, she turned eight. She always watched her sister, working so hard out on the soccer field, always hoping that it would get her far. And the daughter couldn't help but feel a pang of jealousy in knowing that she could never be as good as her sister, the first born. November 26, 2006 During her ninth year, her sister got sick. She was rushed to the hospital, the diagnosis looked grim. She moved from hospital to hospital, but she was only getting worse. The daughter prayed that her sister would be okay. Even though she knew that, even while the oldest was sick, she would never equal that of her sister, the first born. November 26, 2007 In her tenth year, she realized, the only way to even come close to comparing to her sister's strength and power, was through academics, she knew she'd get far. However, not nearly as far, as her sister, the first born. November 26, 2008 When she turned eleven, she was informed that, the oldest of the family, would soon give birth to a child. Her heart skipped a beat, "She may not be sick anymore," she thought, "But she's not prepared to raise a child." But she knew that, Although her sister made an unwise decision, she would never compare to her sister, the first born. November 26, 2009 The year she turned twelve, she felt like she couldn't handle, the pressure put on her to be perfect, to make the right decision, to get the good grades, just like her sister, the first born. November 26, 2010 The year she turned thirteen, she began to see, that she no longer had to be Barbie, Little Miss Perfect. she relied on herself, and herself alone. that, she had to walk her own path, and make herself happy, instead of trying to be as good as, her sister, the first born. She began to focus on her writing, whenever she wrote, she toyed with the words, she watched them dance, they showed her a world, separate from that controlled by her sister, the first born. November 26, 2011 She turned fourteen that year. And, she no longer cared that, in her family's eyes, she would never measure up to, her sister, the first born. Because in her heart she knows, that her family is proud of what she's done, and what she will do, now that she's done worrying about, her sister, the first born.