Draw Straws for My Kidney

Summary

My parents had saved up just enough money to launch one child into a gilded future. Then life gave them twins.

To keep things "fair," they settled on drawing straws.

From new winter coats and summer sports camps to private school prep, every major and minor fork in the road was decided by a heavy, cut-crystal highball glass that lived on our living room mantelpiece. Inside rested two white paper drinking straws, their tops cut perfectly level with the rim.

Every single time, my mother would smile thinly and say, "Dean draws first. He’s the older brother."