Blog 5

Have you ever felt like there was someone out there, exactly like you in almost every single way? Like maybe you have a clone? Well my life has been that way for almost 19 years. That’s right, I’m a twin! I will tell you what it is like to be one and all the ups and downs of it as well.
When I tell you that I am a twin, a lot of things probably come into your mind. For example, you might ask “Do they wear the same clothes?” or “I wonder if their parents ever mix them up?” or “Can they read each other’s minds?” Well to answer those questions, most of the time we don’t wear the same clothes, and if we do, it is usually for an event of some sort. Our parents have mixed us up quite a bit, however it is usually over the phone or when our backs are turned on them. As far as reading each other’s minds, we do tend to think along the same lines, and if someone says something that has an event/memory attached to it, we look at each other and it clicks, but of course a lot of people can do that so I guess that’s not so special!
Growing up and progressing through school, a lot of adults and people I didn’t know would see us and proclaim how much Jay (obviously my brother) and I look alike. Some people might think that would get frustrating, and sometimes it did. However, we didn’t think making a big deal out of every incident would be nice and we learned to just shrug it off. Once we entered junior high, all of our friends were able to tell us apart, as were most of the teachers. Only when we were in activities and sports would people come and ask if we were twins. Now that we are in college (at different schools) it is fun to say that we have a twin and who knows? One day it could be him walking to class instead of me and no one would know the difference!
Being a twin, although it can be a pain sometimes, is one of the best things about my life. Spending lots of time with him means he is considered one of my best friends, and I am pretty sure I wouldn’t trade him for anything!

Blog 4

Ever since I can remember, I have loved being outside playing or doing something that has involved athletic ability. From racing around the block on my bike to climbing my grandma’s 50 foot pine tree, I have always loved being active. However the one thing that I can single out as my favorite activity is running. In grade school we would have a timed run out to a student’s house in the country and back. I first realized I could excel at running when every time we did this, I would come back first. In junior high, my twin brother and I pushed each other in the mile every race, going 1-2 every time. Once high school came around, everyone expected us to run cross country (XC) and track. My brother kept with football while I moved on to XC. Although I didn’t reach my goal of making it to state, I was still fairly accomplished for a freshman. Track came along and held greater things in store, as I qualified for state in the 3200m. Sophomore year was the same only better, and once junior year came about, I was pretty excited. However when the end of the basketball season came around, I became interested in shorter races. After serious deliberation, my coach let me try the 400m. I think he jokes around about it now, saying that he was waiting for the right time to let me run it, because I would up running a school record on the first time out! After medaling at state in that and other events, training for XC became the next focus. After medaling at every race, and winning all but 3 meets as a team, our team won the state championship! Then the next spring, my distance days were over as I switched to mid-sprints and relays. Nothing but good came from this as I medaled in all four events at state again, and our 1600m relay won gold! I can say that from a personal standpoint, running has had a huge impact on my life; not only from an accomplishment standpoint, but also from the great memories it brought me.