I’ve become very envious of my boys. Okay, I guess that’s a given in one way. They’re five years old and free of the trials and tribulations of everyday adult life. They don’t have to worry about the recession or paying monthly bills. Dad and mom take care of the serious stuff while they watch cartoons, go to preschool and generally enjoy life without a care in the world.

No, I’m envious of them for something different. Namely the fact that they have each other, that not only are they brothers, but twin brothers. I had heard all the stories about twins and how close they were, but I wasn’t sure it would be the same with Ben and Alex since they are fraternal, not identical, twins. To tell the truth, they are very different, both in physical appearance (Ben has red hair and is tall, Alex is a stocky blonde) and personality.

But yet there is certainly a connection, a closeness there that I missed by never having a brother. When one brother is home sick and the other goes to preschool, inevitably they miss one another. In fact, the last time I was home with Ben the other day, in the hour immediately preceding Alex and my wife returning home after school, Ben would run to the front door about every five minutes and look out the window to see if they were home yet. I showed him on the clock that, when the little hand was on the four and the big hand was on the 12 they would be home, and then they were a few minutes late, he got worried that something was wrong. Of course, it struck me at the time that Ben was just doing what I’ll be doing on Saturday nights once the boys get their driver’s licenses when they turn 16 (though I’m still holding out hope the driving age will be raised to say, 25, in the next decade or so).

Ben looks out for his brother. In their bedroom, the boys’ beds are in a “L” shape, with the head of Ben’s bed next to the head of Alex’s bed. At night, Ben will often reach over and grab a handful of Alex’s hair, just to make sure he’s close by.

Alex had a bad experience at an IMAX theater earlier this summer, and henceforth hasn’t been interested in going to the theater. The other day, Benjamin announced that he had heard on the television “‘Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs’ is coming to theaters Sept. 18” but then noted that Alex wouldn’t want to see it because it would scare him.

A couple of days later, I said something about well, maybe mom and Ben could go see the movie and Alex and I could do something together. But Benjamin said no, if Alex wasn’t going, he wasn’t going to go without his brother.

Those are just a couple of examples of how close the boys are to each other. Of course, even brotherhood has its limits. The other day Alex was upset because we wouldn’t let him have something and started throwing a huge fit.

My wife trotted out the usual line “Alex, does throwing a fit ever get you what you want?” Then Ben, sitting over in the corner with a smile on face, said “Look, I’m not throwing a fit!” Yes, even twin brothers will occasionally throw each other under the bus.

n Mike Myers is the assistant sports editor for the Times-Herald and a guru of all things Hatchet. E-mail him at mmyers@washtimesherald.com