Life as a triplet is foreign to over 80% of the U.S. population, but juniors Amy Schell, Sam Schell and Sarah Schell experience what it is like every single day.
Being a triplet does not mean all three of the siblings are instantly best friends.
“It’s probably because she’s a girl and we can relate and talk about more things, but I am definitely much closer to Sarah than I am to Sam,” junior Amy said.
It is not easy being so closely related to two other people, especially when people’s personalities and interests are always so different.
“People, including my parents, compare our grades and our attitudes,” Sarah said. “Also, sometimes people base their opinions of me off of one of my siblings because they have met my siblings but they haven’t met me yet. It also goes the other way.”
However, having two close siblings also has many perks.
“Being a triplet is fun,” Sarah said. “It’s a lot easier to make friends. If one of us makes a new friend, then that person will slowly become friends with the other two.”
A common difficulty the siblings encounter is school, but their problems do not stop at academia. Being in the same classes can be difficult, not only for the teachers, but also for the siblings themselves.
“Amy and I are in the same math class and once, our teacher accidentally switched our grades on an assignment,” Sarah said. “One of us didn’t do so well while the other one got a high grade, so it really affected both of our averages. The teacher didn’t realize she had made the mistake until I approached her and told her she had recorded the grades wrong.”
On the other hand, as tiresome as it is to correct teachers who cannot get them straight, the Schells do not exactly tire of playing a few mind games with their teachers.
“Sam and Amy are in the same physics class and on the first day of school they decided to trick the teacher into believing that they had never met each other before,” Sarah said. “It wasn’t until my mom went to open house for the both of them that their teacher finally realized that they were related, but that was a few weeks after school had already started.”
Because they have many classes and teachers in common, it would be easy to assume that all three of them do schoolwork together. But it is just the opposite.
“We never study or do our homework together,” Sam said. “We always distract each other when we try. We make fun of each other and laugh and it’s hard to stay focused.”
Usually siblings pass down a car from one to another or have their own separate cars. Many times, one child even has to share with his or her sibling. However, transportation for the triplets is not complicated at all.
“The deal with our parents was for me to get my own used car while my sisters shared a car,” Sam said. “It’s not a problem for me. I like it that way.”
Both Sarah and Amy are content as well.
“Most of the time, Amy and I are going to the same places so we just go together,” Sarah said. “When I go to work, Amy’s usually sleeping and doesn’t need the car. The only fights we have about the car are about who gets to drive.”
In reality, the hardest thing about being a triplet is something most people would probably never think of and are guilty of doing on a daily basis.
“I really don’t like when we’re grouped together and called ‘the Triplets’ instead of our own names,” Amy said. “Most of the time, after people find out we’re triplets, they see us later and they’ll say stuff like, ‘Oh, here come the triplets.’ I think that’s hard for all three of us.”
The Schells do not view themselves as different from any other family with three kids.
“I don’t think being a triplet is anything special,” Sam said. “I just have two siblings who happen to be the same age as I am. I guess it’s nice being a triplet because I know that I will always have someone there for me.”
