Twin Life

Have you ever heard of the name Michael Phelps? If not, he is an olympic swimmer who has won several gold medals. One of his medals he won was by a hundredth of a second! Can you believe that? In the olypmics, losing an event by two minutes could very well mean that you have finished way behind the leader. Two minutes is not a good number in Olympic race terms.

However, in the case of my life, two minutes is a very special number! Two minutes after my twin brother was born in Farmington, Ct, I graced the world with my presence! When I was born the whole hospital turned into a musical. They broke into song singing, "You Are So Beautiful To Me" by Joe Cocker. All right, that was a joke, but that is how I envision my birth sometimes. Maybe this is my device to cover up the humiliation that I am and will always be the younger brother. Either way, two minutes has been a special number for us although I am sure my mother just thoroughly enjoyed pulling me out only two minutes after my brother. What torture! I feel so bad for her!

I will be writing an article about the adventures of being a twin and hopefully answering some questions you might have. Sit back and relax, as you enter the mind of myself and my twin brother Jon! Now that is a scary thought!

But, be quiet as you read. Jon is very shy and doesn't like loud noises! (That is a joke!) Be as loud as you want, even grab a cold beverage. Make yourself comfortable and try not to be confused as to which one is which.

Before we begin our adventure, I thought I would share with you one of the funniest stories we have had the pleasure of sharing over the years. In fact, we can hardly remember this story, but our mother reminds us about it all the time. She also loves to tell everyone she meets, when the topic of Jon and I comes up.

So here the story is, from my imagination. (Keep in mind we were very little when this event occurred.)

It was a rainy Saturday morning. There was nothing to do and the TV was in the other room. Jon and I were locked up in the playpen surrounded by 40 foot walls of enforced steel and padlocks at every corner. We wanted to watch television; it was a Saturday morning! And we could not miss an episode of Blue's Clues, or was it the Teletubbies? (My young, little mind tended to forget things sometimes, looks like nothing has changed over the years)

How were we going to get out I thought to myself? I wonder if Jon is asking the same question? I mean we are twins, right?

All of a sudden, like an angel had delivered us a message of inspiration out of nowhere, we set a plan into action!

Josh: Goo Goo Ga Ga (I motioned Jon over and we got in a huddle)

Jon: Ga Goo Ga Goo (Jon said, On the count of three let's walk fast over to that side of enforced steel)

Josh: Ga Goo (I agreed and said we had to be brave and use every ounce of strength contained in our two year old bodies)

Jon: Goo Ga(Jon began the countdown, and I joined in)

As soon as we said three in our universal language, we walked on over and knocked the playpen over and walked into the other room. I can't remember whether Teletubbies or Blue's Clue's was on, but we had a blast.

Disclaimer: We didn't escape to watch TV, I actually have no recollection of why we escaped. Maybe Houdini will enlist us for help at his next magic show! I can become famous!

I can barely remember anything, but my mother does laugh hysterically every time she shares this story. I also don't remember how we sounded. I might have added some goos and gas in the wrong place. If so, I apologize for misleading you. Oh yeah, and one more thing, the playpen was not forty feet tall, just to clarify any questions you might be asking your self.

Believe it or not, my mom put a different color sock on our feet as we were leaving the hospital to go home. This was so she could tell us apart. I have always wondered if she matched the right name with the right sock. Maybe I am really supposed to be Jon? That would be so interesting! I can also imagine the fight we must of had on the way home. I wish I could have the blue sock. This green sock is so old school. I am the cooler twin and should of been able to get the blue sock; this is so unfair! I have to live with this for the rest of my life now. Remember that one time when I didn't get the sock I wanted? Yeah, that was a emotional time for me!

It is not uncommon for twins to be born premature, in fact, it is pretty normal. However, in our case, it was not normal. 9 weeks is very early, and so we had to be in incubators with tubes all over us. We were small babies which is a very weird fact because we are now both around 6'3" tall! Our mom must of been very nervous, which is why I have decided to give her a short shout out!

Mom, you are an amazing mother. I don't know how you raised two of us. One of us would of definitely been enough. There must of been times when you just wanted to get up and walk out, because of the stress. But, you stayed strong and endured every trial thrown at you with courage and patience! For that, I thank you! I also thank you for remembering which sock you put on on our feet, although I really did want that blue sock! Thank you for raising us to be people who are hard working and sincere, honest and diligent. Without you, we would not be where we are today! You are the best!

Every time our parents took pictures of us as we were growing up, they put us on the same side. This was so they could remember later on in life. Once again, maybe that one is not me! Maybe I am Jon! The mystery continues. I should go on unsolved mysteries and became famous! If I do, I will share the wealth, don't you worry!

It came down to the last minutes! I was almost called Jon, and would have had the coveted blue sock! I was supposed to come out first, and whoever came out first was to be rewarded with the name Jon. However, Jon kicked me out of the way and I was left to pop out two minutes later. So, no blue sock. But, it is all right, because I like the name Josh better. Or is that because I am biased?

According to The Week Magazine,

1. Mothers of twins live longer.

2. Twins begin playing with each other at 14 weeks old. No wonder why we are so competitive?! We even competed in the womb; we probably played those impossible games too. Like "Tag, you are it!" Where I am I supposed to run? "Tag" "No Tagbacks, cheater!"

3. If you separate identical twins, they still end up simliar.

4. Identical twins can get sick very differently.

Yes, the doctor literally wrote on our birth certificates "Twin A" and "Twin B".

Since I am the younger one, I received the "Twin B" stamp. B, for beautiful, of course! Or maybe it stands for bodacious! I am rather impressive and remarkable! I am just "Joshing" you, pulling your leg!

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Since many of you are probably not a twin, I thought I would address some questions that everyone asks. Some of these questions are asked immediately after finding out that Jon and I are twins. Those questions I will be addressing first.

1. Who is older? Jon by two minutes.

2. Are you identical or fraternal? Identical

Without fail, these questions are asked, usually in that same order, and right after finding out that we are twins.

The next set of questions are asked at any given time.

1. Have you ever switched classes? Believe it or not, we have never switched classes. We went to a really small private school and therefore, everyone knew us by name. We also had the same classes, which caused for a problem for the whole switching idea.

2. Do you ever finish each other's sentence? Yes, we do, and it happens all the time. We can both tell a story and enter in an out as we please without missing even a minor detail.

3. Do you ever find yourself singing the same song? Yes, we always are singing the same songs at the same time. It is quite freaky!

4. Are you guys able to do that thing where you can feel the other one's pain or feelings? Yes, it is called twin telepathy. We do not really feel each other's pain, but can definitely know what the other person is thinking about. This becomes clear when we play sports. We have incredible chemistry on the court because we know what the other person will do. It is so awesome when it happens in sports, because we are sports fanatics and play them all the time!

5. Do you like the same food? Yes, our food tastes are very similar. There are a few differences, but not many!

And for the finale, the one question everyone asks. We have a hard time answering this question.

6. What is it like being a twin / Do you like being a twin? We will usually answer this question with this funny response. I guess so, I mean we have never not been twins. What is it like? I mean, it is normal to us. We don't know, what is like for you not being a twin? We do not know anything else, so we have nothing to compare to. I guess it is cool! Why not? We have a special bond and enjoy each other's company!

This reminds me of a question I forgot to mention before. Were you guys dressed the same as you were growing up? Yes, we definitely were. In fact, I think we were dressed the same up until we were eleven or twelve years old. Maybe our mother just was too lazy to find different clothes? Or maybe it is because people thought it was so stinkin' adorable. I am going to go with the latter choice!

Yes, of course, what a silly question! However, if you mean in a picture, the answer can be no some times. For example, when I uploaded the picture above from Facebook, I had to check the tags, because I didn't know who was who. TRUE STORY!

1. We always have someone who knows what we are going through and feeling!

2. We have a deep connection with each other and share a special bond that no one can ever take away!

1. Competition- We are always in competition no matter what we do. But, usually it can be a positive and fun thing if we don't get carried away with it.

2. When people mess up and call us the other one's name. This one is tough because you never know if you should let the person know. If you do, they feel stupid, but if you don't, they will keep calling you the other name.

When it is all boiled down, the pros definitely outweigh the cons. We have a blast together!

Well, that is all folks! I hope you have enjoyed this journey into the life of being a twin as much as we have! Have a great day my fellow hub friends and remember that the "blue sock" is a very emotional topic. Don't ever bring it up!