Since I was born, I’ve always had a strong passion for survival, the military, weaponry, and combat. I’ve always enjoyed seeing soldiers and their uniforms when I’m out, and I’ve developed a sense of patriotism (not the extreme type, though).
A couple of years ago, I made the decision to join the army, so I’ve been preparing myself physically and mentally to be as ready as possible.
I have a younger sister who has never shared my interest in these things. Whenever I wanted to play fight with her, she would decline, which I understand since it’s not her cup of tea.
However, she always had a tendency to want to do everything I did. Perhaps it’s because she sees me as a role model, but sometimes I sense there’s something more to it, especially now that she’s older than 7.
If I played football, she wanted to play football too. If I took up wakeboarding, she wanted to do the same. If I volunteered in the community, she started expressing interest in doing it as well, and so on.
Ever since I developed a strong sense of patriotism and mentioned my decision to join the army, she suddenly became interested in joining too once she’s old enough.
I don’t know why exactly (although I have some theories), but it infuriates me. This has been my dream, and I feel like she’s trying to take it away from me. I wish she could be her own person and let me pursue my own aspirations.
I discussed this with my mom, but she doesn’t want to take sides to avoid hurting anyone’s feelings, although by doing so, she unintentionally sides with my sister and enables her behavior. So I feel quite alone in this situation.
Of course, if my sister genuinely wants to pursue the things I do, that’s not a problem. I won’t prevent her from following her own interests. However, what frustrates and angers me is the feeling that she always seeks all the attention from our family members (parents, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc.). Personally, I’ve never been the one they talk about.
I often felt overlooked or sidelined in conversations. It was always either my older brother (for being “smart”) or my younger sister (for playing tennis at a high level) who were the center of attention. Over time, I learned not to care about this and developed resilience, until now. Finally, now that I want to join the army, my family “sees” me and shows interest in me.
I enjoy being involved in the conversation and feeling noticed. After all, it’s only natural for any human to desire recognition. And now, I feel like my sister wants to prevent this or become the focal point of attention. Personally, I don’t care about who is talked about, as long as I can pursue my dream without it being undermined.
Furthermore, she treats me poorly and talks to me disrespectfully (which might be due to her age). But when she has questions or wants to talk about the army, she suddenly acts sweet and cute.
She also tends to show off a lot to our parents and even to me, which can be quite annoying.
She has never shown any interest in the army before, so why the sudden change? What has caused this shift? If anyone has experienced a similar situation or can offer advice, I would appreciate knowing how you dealt with it and what mindset or behaviors helped you get through it.
