One of the questions on my Wake Forest application asked me to title my autobiography. I thought there could be no better phrase to describe my life than “Three is NOT a crowd: The Adventures of Being a Triplet”.

You can only imagine the look on my Mother’s face when the fashionable girly girl was informed that she would be having triplet BOYS! ‘But I like to shop!’ was the first thing my mom said to the doctor.

And naturally, in the past 19 years, she equipped us with a keen fashion sense, and still holds us responsible to know the latest fashion trends so we can tell her what works best with her outfits. We even went as far as dressing as triplet girls for Halloween one year and wearing all of her clothes!

All good things come in threes. Being a triplet essentially means you are born with two best friends; I could not have been born with more genuine, passionate, or talented best friends. Although the scariest moments of my life have involved being chased by these best friends, one of whom is a brick wall of an athlete, and the other, an incredibly fast and strong gymnast, meanwhile I am a potato with legs, there is no one else I would rather have by my side through it all.standing holding hands

Growing up as a triplet is one of the most exciting and hilarious situations imaginable. We would always crack up at what people would say: “Are you all the same age?”, “Why aren’t you going to college together and sharing a dorm?”, “I’d like it better if you were identical.” “Why isn’t the oldest one the biggest?” Well so sorry my extra two minutes on Earth didn’t provide me with some magical growth spurt, and my brothers aren’t clones of me, but I can guarantee they are still two of the greatest people in the world.

We are the prime example of nature vs. nurture. My brother Corey is a ridiculously talented athlete, and my brother Sean is a Broadway-bound musical theater protege. I love to cook, write, and perform. The best part about our differences is how we are all each other's biggest fans.

I am fully confident that Corey has such incredible athletic ability because I have absolutely none. He can power through countless lacrosse games, and exercises with impressive agility, while I get winded after jogging an eighth of a mile. My last athletic experience took place in 4th grade during little league where Corey was brought up to bat three times because all of our jersey’s said McManus on the back, and his abilities were much better than ours.

Sean was doing cartwheels behind the bullpen, and I was flirting with the only girl on our team by the bench, so luckily our little swap went undetected. Although we did not share a common interest or ability in athletics, I could not be more excited about Corey’s accomplishments.

Creatively themed birthday parties, coordinated Halloween costumes, crushing poor Santa’s lap while we all sat on him at once, and sharing a room until the far too old age of thirteen are just a few of the things that I like to remember most about you two. But how are you supposed to say goodbye to your wombmates when college comes around?

One of the most difficult things I have ever had to do is leave my wombmates behind when we all went off to college. Being together since birth made our bond inseparable. There are no two people that I could feel more proud of in the whole world. Whenever I needed someone to hang out with, laugh with (or at), or talk to they were always there. I was sad to see them leave, but also incredibly proud of where they were going.

My brother Corey committed to Villanova right before Thanksgiving our sophomore year of high school, yet, I didn’t even know where I was eating for dinner that night, and he knew where he was going to college! My brother Sean took on the most difficult college application process ever and pursued his passion for Musical Theater through several different auditions.

He finally made his decision and accepted an extremely competitive spot in the Boston Conservatory MT Major through the Berklee School of Music. I could not be happier with the renowned universities that would be getting my brothers and I am just your average college student schlepping it over here at Wake Forest ;).

So late August finally arrives and it is time to say goodbye. I vividly remember being very emotional when my brother Corey left as the first goodbye. He had everything packed up and we were about to have our big emotional goodbye when I noticed he was trying to steal two of my belts.

We got into an argument which could not be a better representation of how most of our 19 years together had gone so far, however, we quickly cut the bickering, and he gave me an enormous bear hug and told me “I would say good luck, but I don’t think you need it. See ya soon Keegs.” Although Corey may have treated me like a punching bag growing up (Which in turned toughened me up because it’s not like I was going to do that on an athletic field), I always knew if anyone else ever tried to do anything to me he would protect me.

Sean was going to be leaving for college last so I was the one that would have to say goodbye to him. Since we had similar interests in high school, we did everything together! He was my Duo partner through countless rounds of Speech and Debate, and the lead of every show that I was a supporting character in. He is by far the most talented teenager I have ever met, and in my unbiased opinion, he should be on Broadway.

When I miss him at school, I just watch videos of him performing. He is so humble and kind, and I am so happy that he gets to do what he loves every day. When I hugged Seanie boy goodbye he told me “I know you will kill it because you are capable of anything.” Having the most accomplished and talented person I know tell me that I was capable of doing whatever I wanted felt so great and was a big confidence booster.

It was so interesting coming to college and never being referred to as Corey or Sean’s brother. I thought it would feel refreshing to only be known as Keegan, but instead of getting too comfortable in my solo identity, I found myself talking about my brothers to anyone that was willing to listen. Luckily, our hilarious and adorable childhood made for stories that were very entertaining.

Our parents played a huge part in keeping us so close because they never tried to force us to do the same things! My parents embraced our differences and allowed us to thrive in all different aspects of our interests. I am so grateful to have such incredible parents who have loved and supported us unconditionally.

The most important thing I learned by being apart from my triplet brothers is just how thankful I am for them. We always told each other how proud we were of one another, and how great we thought the others were, and we knew how to be brutally honest, and fight with one another when we didn’t see eye to eye. But, I don’t think I have said enough thank you’s to them.

To my brothers: thank you for making me so confident. Thank you for showing me that I have an incredible support system whenever I need it. Thank you for sticking up for me. And thank you for being the best wombmates I could ever find. Now hug me brothas!