A Look Inside the Lives of Identical Twins
Alex and Zoe are an identical set of twins living in West Hartford, Connecticut. Before moving to Connecticut they lived in New York and went to Pennington Elementary school. They are currently seniors at Hall High School and plan on going to college after they graduate. Growing up together, Alex and Zoe share many of the same interests such as gymnastics, piano, and photography.
The fascination of identical twins seems to be never-ending. The idea of two people who share the same DNA and look almost exactly alike appears to be just short of a biological miracle. Questions of who is who, who is older, and many more swarm from onlookers who try to grasp a dynamic that they could never personally understand. Emily and Alex, Kati and Emily, and Zoe and Alex are three sets of identical twins. While they share a similar dynamic to most siblings: the occasional fights, inside jokes, and closeness, their relationship is much more intertwined in day to day life. There are interests, likes and dislikes, feelings, mentality, and personality traits that are similar but also different.
Struggles with identity are not amiss. The sense of missing individuality that other siblings experience doesn’t compare to that of which comes from being an identical twin. Constantly grouped together and pressed into the same mold, at times you wonder if people recognize you and your twin are two different people that don’t share all the same values and interests. That is not to say twins aren’t similar. Zoe and Alex both enjoy playing tennis in the spring and have been playing piano together since the age of 5. Kati and Emily enjoy the same books, TV shows, and movies. The third set of twins, Emily and Alex, are both involved in cheer and share some of the same friends. It’s easy to find similarities but the real challenge is recognizing the differences. While Zoe has always been fascinated with psychology and social sciences, Alex prefers the visual arts such as film and photography. Emily and Kati both enjoy art, but Emily less so, preferring sciences like biology and anatomy. Alex and Emily enjoy watching movies together, but Alex is more into scary films than Emily. Though seemingly minor, these differences are what make each sibling unique.
Despite the challenges of being a twin, the pros outweigh the cons. Having a twin means having a permanent best friend. Whether it be about your problems, your successes, or the TV shows you watch together, you have someone you can always talk to and relate to. Someone who understands you, who can tell how you are feeling without the need for an explanation. Twins have been a world wonder to psychologists, scientists, and average people alike, people wonder how it’s possible for two people to be so alike, how they can share the same genes and the same face, yet have sometimes minor and sometimes obvious, differences in personality and preferences. But, in the end, the only people who can truly understand them are the twins themselves.
