Magnesium is a Child
Middle child syndrome.
No spotlight, all stability, like the magnesium that stares at you from your medicine cabinet, begging to calm you down, but you forgot you even owned it.
If you know, you know.
It’s a calmness, a self-sufficient machine, with an essential, yet quiet voice, bringing a shadowed intelligence to your perspective and home.
Duke Dennis once said, “Being a middle child is not fair, because you get the worst of all worlds,” but that it made him who he is today, independent with upright feelings.
I will never argue with a beautiful man, so the rumors must be true.
A resentful wallflower who, in actuality, plays the role of an essential team player. A peacekeeper and resolver, without the grace or acknowledgement. Different from the rest, but needed to feel whole: The Middle Child.
In the 1920s, Alfred Adler, an Austrian psychiatrist, developed a theory on the importance of birth order and how it greatly influences personality and behavioral development. He speaks on the middle child’s role in conflicts, describing them as ‘adaptable, diplomatic,’ excelling in ‘cooperation and negotiation.’
An older sister: the golden child, firstborn, strong, and burdened with the responsibilities of her younger sisters. The youngest: the baby, carefree, widely adored, and forever protected.
It’s the panic when people aren't getting along, or always finding yourself in a group dynamic you love to be around, but you’re never really the one speaking. It’s the need to fix and mend situations so other people feel better about themselves, but what’s in it for me? You know her, you love her: The Middle Child.
Bella Hadid, an iconic middle child herself, says it was always her brother and sister ‘buddy-buddying up’ and she was the ‘ostracized one,’ which is just real.
Some middle children could have that need for rebellion, and are probably more likely to get away with it, because no one was really searching for you in the first place?
It’s not due to a lack of love, though. It simply mirrors a child who remains fine, and ultimately can feel and come to require that independence from their family. They gain the knowledge from the elder siblings, and gain the responsibilities of caring for younger siblings, which I think could be encouraging.
Personally, I wouldn’t change it for anything, and I love whatever psychological imbalance my birth order has given me.
Strike Out,
Kaden Horn
Boca Raton
Kaden Horn is a content writer for Strike Magazine, Boca. She is a free-spirited Leo who loves to write humorously, but also in a way that is intentional and meaningful. She thrives in peaceful environments, whether it’s at the beach, working out, or rewatching Vampire Diaries for the 100th time. You can reach her at kaden.horn813@gmail.com, or her Instagram @kadennhunter
Cover Image Courtesy: The Simpsons/Matt Groening
