What Kind of Guy?

As you know, yesterday I published a text message I received from my husband while I was away last weekend, and asked for your interpretation of it. In case you missed it, this is the message:

"What time are you back today? The kitchen is a mess"

One might interpret this message to mean that the kitchen is a mess, and that my husband wanted to know when I'd be back to clean it up.

If you know my husband, you know that he just wanted to know how much time he had to get the kitchen cleaned up before I got home! He would never deliberately leave a big mess just for me to clean up. Especially a mess that was made on his watch.

But, if you know my husband, you also know that he's got a great sense of humor and a keen sense for the nuances of language. He composed the message with deliberate vagueness to provoke me. Of course, knowing him all too well, I didn't fall for it. Humored, yes. Provoked, no.

So I knew the kitchen would be cleaned up when I got home. But what I hadn't expected was the degree to which he did the job. The kitchen actually sparkled and shined! Such a lovely way to walk in the door.

And to top it all off, he told me that the kids had spontaneously decided to chip in with the household chores that morning. My son did several loads of wash without being asked to, and the girls tidied up the house so I wouldn't arrive home to things out of place.

Yes, time away is good for us all. It makes us realize how much we appreciate the loved ones from whom we're separated.

Maybe I should go away more often...

Provocative

The text message read:

"What time are you back today? The kitchen is a mess"

Hmmm... How would you interpret this message?

{Shamelessly soliciting your interpretations today - mine to follow tomorrow!}

His Lesson

If you have a tween boy, you know what a Ripstik is. In fact, you probably have one. But for those of you who are scratching your heads, picture a curvy skateboard, split in the center. The front and back boards are mounted on a bar and supported by inline skate-style wheels, enabling them to pivot independently. It's very wobbly and there are no handlebars.

Doesn't sound easy? You're right, it's not. I've tried it. After 30 minutes of practice and approximately 100 attempts, I could finally go about 20 feet without falling off. And it wasn't a pretty sight - arms flailing, I looked like I was going to lose my balance and crack my head at any moment. But the kids make it look soooo easy. My son has had his for nearly 3 years now, and he can go long distances, while multi-tasking(!), without falling off.

Until this week. While rushing home to meet a curfew, he found himself off-balance, causing the Ripstik to shoot out from under him. Instinctively, he put his hands out to break his fall. Instead, he broke his wrist.

Fortunately, it is a pretty "good" break - a simple fracture of his radius that will heal fine.

Some people have asked if I'm going to allow my son to ride his Ripstik again. It's not safe, they say, and his fall proves it.

But how do kids gain experience and test their limits if they're overly protected? I think it's so healthy - indeed, necessary - to make mistakes, in order to learn from them. My son told me that the reason he was careless was because he'd stayed too long at his friend's house, causing him to rush home to meet the curfew. He concluded, on his own, that staying those few extra minutes wasn't worth the short-term pain and long-term inconvenience it caused (he broke his dominant wrist, and the cast he'll wear for the next several weeks extends out to his fingers - so yes, it's mighty inconvenient for him).


Since he's just a few years away from driving, I extended our conversation to include visualizing him as a teenager in danger of missing curfew, but instead of riding a Ripstik, he's driving a car. This week's experience enabled him to see how a similar mistake, but involving a car, could result in a far more serious outcome.

He'll always remember this accident.

It's a reminder that he's not invincible.

And we all need reminding of that once in a while.