Dear Nikki,
A So-Sick-Of-Sharing Sister
My sister and I have been sharing a room FOREVER. I’m 13 and she’s 8. Even though I love her and we get along most of the time, we are SO different! More and more, I’ve been feeling like I need my own space! Somedays I’d like to launch myself to the moon just to have time to myself!! We have a guest room with a bed that my parents just leave empty unless people come over (which is, like, only on holidays!). Sometimes my mom uses it as an office, but not every day. I’ve begged them to let me turn the guest room into my own room, but they just won’t listen! What can I do about it? Help!
Hi So-Sick-Of-Sharing Sister,
Holy Peanut Butter, Jelly and Pickle sandwich, do I ever feel bad for you ☹!! I’m SO glad that I don’t have to share a room with MY little sister. I mean, Brianna basically comes into my room any time she wants, so I don’t really have my very own space, but I can still feel you! Little sisters are sometimes KA-RAY-ZEE sometimes!!!
Okay, I’ve got some great advice for you . . . but first I’ve got some not-so-hot news and I hate giving people not-so-hot news! Well, okay, except for this one time when we were all supposed to go with Dad on a trip to the National Exterminators of America conference.
OMG, based on Dad’s pride in his Roach mobile, I couldn’t even imagine the parking lot of that conference. If the insect-killing peeps from around the nation were there, what else would be perched on all the trucks and cars? Giant scorpions? Giant ticks? Giant fleas???? My entire body wanted to curl up like a worm just thinking about it!!!
ANYWAY, I answered the phone two days before we had to leave and found out that his conference had been cancelled and the hotel had given the rooms to the National Plumbers of America due to a bunch of toilet pipe leaks. Yeah, that bad news was NOT hard to deliver.
But back to you! Warning: you’re probably not going to want to hear what I’m about to say anymore than Dad wanted to hear about his conference being cancelled (um, yeah, he’d already bought a roach bow-tie).
Sooooo… maybe go get a snack first! Or a picture of you and your besties! Or something else comforting, like a poster of puppies wearing cute hats. (NOT puppies covered in peanut butter, which is what happened when Madame Bri-Bri gave seven perfectly adorable puppies massages with something that was meant to be on a SANDWICH—I know, right??? Yeah, that’s a long pet-sitting story that I talked about in one of my diaries.)
Are you ready? I have to be honest, and I’m really, really, stomach-churning sorry to have to tell you this, but . . .
You will NEVER get away from your little sister!!!
*** Cue Doomsday music sung by the sloth in the movie The Croods***
🎵 DA-DA-DAAAAAAAAA!! 🎵
And here’s the thing: even if you get your own room, you probably won’t get too much extra privacy from your parents either. They’ll be all nosy, wanting to know what you’re up to and why on earth you’d possibly want to be alone, which is SO. LAME.
I mean, parents were kids once, weren’t they??? How do they not get it??? Okay, actually, I can totally see why my dad wouldn’t get it. There are lots of things he doesn’t get. Eww, now I’m picturing him at middle school, keeping bugs in his pocket and using them to try to get friends and impress girls!! Let’s erase that image from my brain RIGHT. NOW.
Here’s the good news (I told you there was good news!!!):
You’ve always got room to negotiate with your parents! It sounds like you’ve got some good reasons for wanting more privacy. Here’s my advice:
- Tell your parents your reasons for wanting your own room and DON’T make them all about your sister. Make it sound practical! Maybe you need to keep the light on longer for homework and you don’t want to disturb your little sis’s sleep!
- Offer to move out of the office/guest room any time that people stay over or need to use it as an office! Say it’ll be no problem and you won’t cover the room in too much stuff that can’t be removed if necessary.
- If you have to keep sharing a room with your sister, ask your parents to help lay down some serious rules that will give you more private time.
Okay, readers, your turn to chime in—have you ever felt crowded in your room or your house? Have you ever wanted a space of your own? How did it make you feel? Tell us all about it in the comments!
