It is very odd observing one's child exhibit behavior which proves that humans truly are beasts. Our toddler is no exception. We, the parents, try hard to acculturate our little caveman into Society, to teach him to curb those primordial violent urges: no hitting, kicking, punching or scratching other fellow creatures, namely us humans and our furry companions. Our child's father and I work hard at being the models of emotional maturity, but one wonders sometimes.
The other day, for instance, I happened to walk in on a gruesome scene: Jonah brutally and repeatedly kicking Elmo, who was doubling over, laughing, shrieking and begging for more in his battery-powered voice: "That tickles! Do it again!" I assure you that this event ranks up there with one of the creepiest slices of life I have witnessed.
And here is my dilemma: Do I ignore this odd bout of violence, instead sneaking out quietly without my son ever knowing I was there, happy no sentient being was the target this time, or do I tell him to stop, forbidding him from abusing his animated robot friend with a human-like voice ever again? If you guessed that my reaction was the former, you were correct. But Tim's, on a separate occasion, was the latter. (For his love of Elmo?) Here is where we differ. What would you have done?
1 comment:
What would I have done?
What would ~I~ have done?
On your own with that one, dude. Never being asked "Wanna hug me for a reason?" is a steep price, but it buys me not having to ever decide whether to intervene against an anti-Elmo hate crime spree.
Post a Comment