It's hard growing up in the shadow of a famous older sister.
Ok, so she wasn't famous when we were younger but she definitely
was first in line when it came to dishing out the better quality
genes. We three Bolton girls have widely different personalities,
which does make you question how the whole genetics distribution is
decided. Sharon certainly got the adventurous gene. She'd lead the
three of us, and any friends who were brave enough to tag along, on
many a madcap scheme, usually ending badly but fun nevertheless.
She had the leadership gene where as I inherited the 'tag along and
get into trouble' one!
At school, she was a hard act to follow (tick gene boxes for
intelligent, popular, diligent) and Kerry and I often failed to
live up to the 'Bolton girl' reputation.
She then whizzed around the country fine-tuning her career,
ending up as 'something in the city' complete with company BMW,
before trading it all in to try her hand at writing and become a
best-selling author. Definitely the work of the ambition gene.
I, on the other hand, appeared to get the homely gene - marrying
my childhood sweetheart, mum to three kids, having a job - not a
'career' - so it was with some amusement that I found myself
described as the infinitely more glamorous one! Had my high-flying,
successful, highly-proficient sibling compared herself to her 'not
any of the above' little sis and found herself wanting? Bizarrely,
it seems that despite what we have been given we all covet the
personality traits that genetics denies us.
As I watch my own three children growing up and developing their
own personalities, the same thoughts cross my mind - which genes
will they have inherited and how will their genetic make-up allow
them to handle what life throws at them? I can only hope that
they will be able to embrace the differences between them, see that
actually the genes do balance themselves out and remain, as we
have, the best of friends.
Whilst leaving you all wrapped in that warm, cosy Walton-family
glow of peace and harmony, I should point out that I also inherited
the wicked gene. I've just posted a link to this article to
everyone in my address book (that's 64,000 employees) inviting them
to read this, so that when the viewing figures come in, the most
read blog on S J Bolton's website will the one written by her
'infinitely more glamorous' younger sister!
Louise (nee Bolton)