Playing Favorites

Dad and his favorite child.

I have a picture in my bathroom of Ruby and me at Josh and Emily's wedding when Ruby was a baby.  It's one of my favorite pictures.  Xanthe looked at it and asked me with her chin quivering, "Is Ruby your favorite child?"  Tears were welling up in her eyes as she looked up at me pleadingly.  I said, "No!  You are, of course!"  I gave her a big hug and she breathed a sigh of relief.

Later, we were all talking about how excited we were that Uncle Trajan is coming home from Paris.  Golda asked me, "Who is your favorite brother?"  I said, "Oh, I could never choose one!  I love them both infinitely, so it would be impossible to have a favorite."  When I asked Golda who her favorite brother was, she replied, "Ptolemy.  Or Freestone."  See?  It's like chocolates.  You can't choose just one!

If you asked Trajan, Josh and me who our parents' favorite was, we would all  accuse another of being the favorite.  Josh was the baby and was so cute, loving and fun that everyone wanted to be around him.  He got to go places with Mom, Aunt Pat and her baby Jamison when Trajan and I had to go to school.  He always got out of trouble by saying, "That's over now."  He was always creating excitement, always the star of a sports team.  Even the cats and dogs loved him the best.  He was obviously the favorite.

Trajan always sneaked out of bed and had cereal late at night with Dad while they watched Star Trek.  He was always neat and tidy.  He sat at his drafting desk and drew buildings with hundreds of perfect bricks while Josh and I turned our creative ideas into messes.  My parents would always side with him when he wanted everyone to be quiet in the car so he could read.  He was ambitious and praiseworthy.  He was obviously the favorite.

I was the oldest and the only girl, so naturally I was the most fun for my mom to shop for.  I got to do everything first.  I never had to share my birthday like the boys did, since their birthdays were one day apart.  I was the best at tricking my parents into sending me to Europe for the summer.  I was obviously the favorite.

Now, it's a competition for who is the favorite uncle.  There are so many Dopp uncles, we don't think about who is the favorite; we just love them all.  But with only two King uncles, they pretend to vie for Favored Uncle status.  Let's see, Josh is right next door, he and Emily have provided us with three fun cousins to play with.  That's big.  Josh likes to play with the kids.  He is funny and makes us laugh with his stories.  Just like always, he is the best at fun projects like snow forts and sledding.  Xanthe and Ptolemy play at his house for hours at a time.  He is a nice and patient dad, just like Bill.

But Trajan is exciting.  He is living the life Golda and Ruby long for, traveling the European continent with Paris as his home base.  Stick with him, and you might get an invitation!  He is exciting.  He is always the first one there when I have a baby.  He even watched when Freestone was born.  He texts me jokes.  He never forgets any of our birthdays and he calls home just to see what funny and remarkable things the kids have done lately.

Today, Trajan in the favorite because it's his birthday.  Tomorrow, Josh is the favorite because it's his birthday.  Wednesday, it's up for grabs.  Maybe we'll give it to Scott or Emily.  Hmm, who is the favorite in-law...