Scene: Bayswater playground. Max has just run up the slide after I asked him not to because there were too many small children on the playground who would try to copy him and get hurt.
Me: Max, come take a 2 minute break on the bench. I just asked you not to run up the slide again.
Max: Fine. (runs over, plops onto the bench and pulls out a pocket notebook and a pencil out of his jeans, and smiles up at me) Well, at least I am prepared!
Scene: At Devonport rental, to be latter named “the ant house.” Alex is sitting on the livingroom floor eating raisins. Max and I are at the table working on his math.
Alex: MAMA!! MAMA!! MAH-MAAAAA
Me: (rushing over looking for blood) What? What is wrong?
Alex: LOOOOK! A-Zin Walk! A-Zin Walk! (translation: look, the raisin is walking)
Max: He is right! The raisin is moving!
I look down to see a dropped raisin (dropped not a 2 min earlier) being carried away by the ants. We moved the next day.
Arran keeps joking that our kids have taught him that the “nature” beats out “nurture” by a long shot. The fact is that Max and Alex just came out different. I was reminded of this again today when we were in the downtown section of Brisbane. It is winter break here and they had a little stage set up with someone in a koala suit and fake snow. Alex was thrilled; we could not unbuckle him from the stroller fast enough. And, when he was free he bounded up to the koala, hugged him and posed for a picture. I looked down at Max, before I could even ask, he replied, “Nope, there is no way I am going to touch that fake koala. Do you know how many germs are on that suit? Besides, it is just a man dressed up as a koala anyways.”
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment