I’m so glad I had more than one child, even though my children struggle to get along sometimes. It’s the most frustrating thing as parent. I see value in each of them, but sometimes all they can do is pick each other apart. I wish they wouldn’t, just as you shouldn’t alienate your family. You want your family to be a haven against the world. A place where the real you gets to be whatever it wants—without judgment.

The time you will spend with your siblings under the same roof is a relatively short time when you think about the average age most people live. Strengthen those bonds rather than tear them down. If you do, they become like a secret weapon in your life. No matter how far away you go, no matter what challenges you will face, you’ll have a person with an intimate understanding of your unique quirkiness to always lean on for support.