Seeing Double

Seeing+Double

Catherine Zhang, Feature Editor

Stepping into the car, Diamond Bar High School sophomore Patrick Pribadi was astounded to discover that he and his brother, Philip, are once again dressed in similar outfits—a black Nike jacket and a fitted white t-shirt. These occurrences happen almost on a weekly basis, which shouldn’t be shocking since the two are identical twins.

The Pribadi brothers are not the only set of twins attending DBHS; among the others are freshmen Catherine and Christina Liu and Angela and Vivian Hung.

Even though the brothers have similar appearances, they consider their personalities to be contrasting. Patrick describes himself as more outgoing and tries to help Philip, the calmer and more collected twin, reach out to others.

Like the Pribadi brothers, the identical Liu twins also have very similar features and interests, while the Hungs, fraternal twins,   consider themselves as two completely different individuals.

“With a twin, I feel like you have a constant companion. If you have something you really enjoy and want to share the passion with someone, you have a twin to share it with,” Catherine said.

In movies and television shows, twins finishing each other’s sentences may seem like a cliché, but for the Liu sisters, it happens on a frequent basis.

“People find it funny when we end our sentences together. Sometimes, we would be in a conversation and we would either say the same thing at the same time or finish each other’s sentences. People get so weirded out,” Christina said.

Despite the various perks of having a fellow companion who shares the same common interests, most people don’t realize the hardships twins endure.

“Some people think we have the same personality, or they don’t refer to us as singular people. It’s nice to be an individual, but we tend to hang out together a lot, which causes them to think that,” Catherine said.

In order to prevent others from categorizing them as a set, Angela and Vivian prefer differentiating themselves and expressing themselves independently.

The two dress in contrasting styles and hang out with a different group of friends. In addition, the duo has vastly different interests; Angela is an avid fan of basketball, while Vivian describes herself as more girly.

“We don’t want people grouping us together like we are the same person, so we try to differentiate ourselves. Even though we are twins, I would describe our relationship as two different people in a house,” Vivian said.

The sisters view being compared to each other as a burden, as others criticize the two merely based on the preconceived notion that they should act in a similar fashion.

However, despite the difficulties, Catherine views having a twin as a positive aspect, since she and Christina have developed a closer bond as the result.

“When I see other people wanting a twin, I think it’s a hassle to have a twin. But at the same time, it’s also cool since no one else has someone who looks exactly the same, like they may have a sister but they wouldn’t have the same bond twins have,” Catherine said.