Anders, now a few months into kindergarten, was given homework to discuss what he’s thankful for.
“So what do you think?” Leslie asked as she prepared dinner.
“I’m thankful for daddy and money,” Anders proudly answered.
“Wait, do you mean ‘daddy and mommy’?”
“Nope, daddy and money,” he repeated before hopping off the stool at the counter and wandering off to play with a toy.
When Leslie told me this, I confessed I kinda agreed. I mean, money buys you some damn good shit these days. She was amused but still a tad hurt.
A few days later, Leslie showed up at Anders’s school to help out for the afternoon. After snack but before singing, the kids sat in a circle and shared what they were thankful for. When they got to Anders, he announced, “I’m thankful for daddy.”
On the drive home, Leslie called to provide the update.
“So here I am standing in the room, totally unacknowledged but thinking at least he doesn’t sound spoiled.”
“Personally, I would have preferred if he simply answered money. In light of the economy, it would show he’s in touch with things.”
Not at all surprising, my explanation did little to soothe Leslie’s somewhat bruised feelings.
Then, this morning, Leslie called to talk about my pending visit.
“I went to Blockbuster yesterday and picked up some movies for our turkey coma.”
“Anything good?”
“I’m sure you’re excited I got the last copy of The Vegetable Pirates.”
“Is that porn?”
“It’s for the kids. Speaking of which, great news!”
“Olivia told you she wants to come live with me?”
“No but you can have her. That girl was up at 2am saying she was scared about the sound of the heat turning on. I slept on her floor the rest of the night. Anyway, this morning I asked Anders what he’s thankful for and his answer was daddy and mommy!”
“Congrats! You finally made the cut. Did you pay him off?”
“Well, I did buy him a little something on Saturday.”
“If it works, who cares. But seriously, congrats! Enjoy it now because I’m sure within a few years, no matter what you buy him, he’ll hate both of you. I’m speaking from experience.”
About Me
- Paige Jennifer
- United States
- Sometimes a girl and other times a woman. Sometimes silly and other times serious. Sometimes brave and other times scared. Always a writer.
Head Count
I Start My Day With
I End My Day With
14 comments:
I remember asking my mom why she married dad ... because I thought my dad was ugly ... weird.
wait until next month.......when they have reasons to be thankful for aunt paige, or atleast aunt paige's money.
Yep. That whole unconditional love thing doesn't work the other way.
I remeber my son pitting me against his mom once when I was chewing his butt for soemthing. The arguement went something like this:
Me-Don't you ever talk back to your mom, OK?
Kid: I didn't
Me: What do you mean you "didn't", she just told me you did.
Kid: Dad, who are you going to believe? Your own flesh and blood or some stranger you picked up and married off the street.
End of arguement. I haven't believed a single thing that bitch has told me since.
Tell your sister not to feel bad -- all kids take their moms for granted. When I was a little kid, every day, when my dad got home, I'd tell my mom "You can leave now, Daddy's home."
Of course, once I was an adult, she made me feel guilty about it for the rest of her life.
Ah... the attitude of gratitude... it's a tough one for kids...
At least Sister PJ is there to expose the humor in the situation.
Sounds like a smart kid to me! Being thankful for money is always a good idea.
Hey, that's what good parents do. They guide their children & help them make good choices. Your sister was just looking out for his future happiness. =-)
Anders is a boy after my own heart. I, too, can be bought.
Smart sister and smart son. Sounds like the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.
Parent=taken for granted
It's a sure sign of being successful at it.
My niece said she was thankful for her teacher. Her teacher gave her an A+. She's 5 and already a suck up. Smart kid!
Could have been worse. He could have replied "Daddy and Monkey." :-P
I'm with you in this. I'm not sure I was aware of money when I was five.
Post a Comment