The Wonders of Twinship by Angie Ledbetter

I feel sorry for the singlets of the world. I often wonder if the majority of people who weren’t born with a twin feel incomplete, or is it a case of not missing what you’ve never had? Born an identical twin, I’ve always had another “half” of myself who can complete my thoughts and sentences, knows by a word or a barely raised eyebrow exactly what I’m thinking. She has also been my sounding board, creative partner, best friend, and the person I go to much of the time for reality checks.

There are special bonds between parent and child, husband and wife, long term best friends, and siblings – but those fine and important relationships still do not share the closeness of twins. I’ve known many sets of twins in my life, and from those I know, this theory hasn’t always held true; especially between fraternal twins or triplets. So I feel doubly blessed having my identical twin walking around the planet with me. We love our siblings and our friends fiercely, but there’s a completeness to our “twinship” that isn’t found in other relationships.

That’s not to say we are completely alike in tastes, choice of friends, goals, or even personality. In fact, when we were about eight-years-old, we refused to dress alike anymore. Well, unless it was test day at school and we planned to switch classes, or we wanted to trick a friend or a date. Over the years, we’ve grown to look a bit more different from one another, so that’s no longer an option, sadly. But not even our spouses, parents, or friends can tell us apart on the phone still. And if I decide to lose the extra weight, or she puts back on a few pounds, we'll be back in the look-alike zone.

For all the closeness, shared history, fun times, memories, and sense of completeness my twin has given me over the last almost five decades, I am truly grateful. I wish everyone could experience these things once in life – the phone ringing at the same time you are calling your twin because she’s calling you, the “knowing” something is wrong with your birth partner without anyone telling you, and the added joy and halved sorrows you get by the sharing of life’s events. So, here’s to you, Alaine. Thanks for being my other half!