Sure, the love between parents and their kids is unfathomable, bla bla bla… No matter how much you love those kids, they’ll still think their aunts and uncles are the coolest people on earth. So, keep your mom’s spot and stop fighting for someone else’s position (evil smirk).
Children boost a person’s self-esteem in a completely natural way. Your life dramatically changes when a child comes into the family [1]. Everyone acts like you’re going to go crazy taking care of the new baby while the mom recuperates from the travails of pregnancy, but it’s not usually as hectic as they describe it. Heck, I used to sit by the cot and watch my elder sister’s daughter while the little girl slept, hoping ever so slightly that she’d wake up soon so I could hold the soft, sweet-smelling bundle in my arms.
Her coming into this world three years ago made me an aunt, and she likes to take advantage of the fact that I have too soft of a spot for her. Sometimes, when I take her out with me, I like to tell people she’s my daughter, and they never doubt it. She just laughs and counts the number of times I do that so she can have something to laugh over at home with her dad. Her mom often complains that whenever I come into London, I’m simply coming to undo every bit of discipline they’ve instilled in her. That’s their problem, not mine. I’m only there to love, care, spoil, and love some more.
You become more responsible
You find yourself stepping up to the task and sitting at the forefront of her upbringing when her parents are indisposed. Becoming an aunt means making positive adjustments to your lifestyle that a child can look up to. There’s no partying late at night and coming home drunk to bits when you know there’s a kid who thinks you’re the best person on earth looking up to you.
You get a new best friend
Whenever they are together, my little sister and niece are always at loggerheads over who has the bulk of my love, no matter how many times I tell them that I love them equally. It just goes in one ear and right out the other. A day finally came when they decided to reach a consensus: they’d both become best friends and forget about me. They lasted only one hour before the war began again.
The three-year-old lets me see the world again through the eyes of a toddler, and I sometimes share my life stories with her. She doesn’t understand most of it, but she listens nonetheless and tries to give pieces of advice such as, “It’ll get better, Auntie”. It means a lot to me.
You become someone’s biggest fan
It doesn’t matter whether they’re not so good at whatever they choose to do yet. You’d always think they’re amazing. My niece loves ballerinas and recently tried out ballet. She seems to have two left feet, but I’ve watched all her videos and I thought she was awesome.
Aunts are super-protective
You always check to see if your little one hasn’t wandered off into the streets or fallen off from something. She’s always strapped into the car seat and is never too hot or too cold, not while I’m right there to provide for all her needs like my life depends on it.
Aunts are great advisers and listeners
When she was a baby, I developed a strong affinity for picking up the sound of cries. Now, in pre-school and still trying to make friends, I video-call her regularly to know how things are going. She shares her experiences with me as best as her words can let her. I try to let her know that she’s amazing and people are going to love her if she gives them a chance. The little angel is so shy and so sweet.
Aunts get to know true love
The child is not yours biologically, but you’d give your life for her without a second thought. You contribute to her college funds until you have your own kids, and you deny yourself certain things just to afford the best for her. What love could be truer than that?
Read More: Nurse Places Dying Newborn next To Her Twin, Ends up Giving Her a Hug That Saves Her Life
Sources
- “When You Make A Girl An Aunt, You Change Her World In All The Best Ways.” The Odyssey Online. Andrea Johnson. April 24, 2019.