It runs in the family... just don't tell the Chinese!

It's always fascinating meeting the siblings of your friends. They have nicknames for each other, they're brutally honest about everything, and somehow it's a bit odd because facially, faint similarities can be identified - is it alright to think a male friend's sister is hot stuff? But in the developed world, we will see far less of these familial idiosyncrasies than the age of those perky baby-boomers, as families only number 2 . x these days.

Audi A2: probably has a smaller carbon footprint than the average person in the developed world. (I don't know if this is actually true...!)

I was once contemplating out loud about getting a new car. 'That's just ridiculous, your family has two cars already'. What a rude awakening that was from day-dreaming about a 5-seater Audi A2. 'Carbon footprint, hmm...'. She made me feel a little guilty. And then one thing leads to another, and you start to think whether the Chinese with their one-child policy got it right after all. China is surely the bastion for sustainable living. 

But surely for our decadent, consumerist generation, life would be less colourful. No more calling your sister 'chubba', nor mercilessly poking the fat around the stomach. There wouldn't be that sense of comparison either. How could you have turned out even with a slight change in your environment; how would your genes have developed then? One could be a political protege, but defeated by his younger brother for Labour Party leader candidacy. While you may have competency in one language, your elder sibling might be racing away to study weird and wonderful alphabets like the Cyrillic one. A sister might be a party animal downing vodka while the brother looks after pray mantises or something random like that. And of course, your construction of identity might be totally different. 

'Love thy brother?' Ed 1 David 0 - the elder brother maybe has more notches on his bedpost though?!

It is really quite strange. You turn left at the family dinner table and think how different is this person? How much will I see them when I start my own family? But in an abnormal kind of way, that ever-so-familiar face completes you and becomes an integral part of your being - whether you like it or not!