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The Rise of the Singleton
If you’re an only child, you’re in good company
In the United States, the increase of one-child families doubled from 11% of the population in 1976 to 22% in 2015. That means there were 70,554,000 singletons.
Does that number surprise you?
It does me.
It’s more than I would have thought. Then again, not everyone is so open about sharing their singleton status with others. Most of us have encountered the standard prejudiced retort, “Oh, you must have been spoiled.”
No. Not even close. My mother worked full time, and by the time I was 7, I was a latchkey kid and was expected to do the ironing (a task that I still retaliate against with gusto) after school. Other chores were required as well. So, NO, I WAS NOT SPOILED.
Pardon me if I get a little defensive. It’s a knee-jerk reaction to a lifetime of conditioning.
And, even if I had been, there is no requirement that to be a spoiled kid, you must be an only child.
I put myself through college by working full time as a secretary on Wall Street for nine years and taking classes at night. In fact, I graduated High School on a Thursday and started a full-time job at 9 AM on Monday. I was…
