Life's Best Fertilizer! 01/26/2011
 My son is an enigma. On one hand, he has bouts of defiance where he gets kicked off karate mats. (Apparently "horse stance" does not mean yelling "giddy up! giddy up" and cracking a pretend whip.) On the other hand, he's one of the most empathetic people I know. One look at the jail card in Monopoly will set him off into a crying binge for five minutes. "That poor man!" he'll cry. "He just looks so sad. I just don't know if I can play this game anymore!" Yesterday after school, he heard Pip mention, "Mommy, what book are you writing now that you are fired?" * Note: Good Housekeeping let me go after 3 years. I wouldn't call it being "Fired" per say. They are going in a new direction and it's completely okay. But Pip doesn't mince words. I think she'd like being raised by Amy Chua. They could write The Year of the Tiger First Grader, practice piano for hours on end, and organize their desks every Sunday. Suddenly water came spurting out of Stink's eyes like a fire hydrant on a hot L.A. day. "Ohhhh, poooooor Mommy!" "No, sweety! I'm fine! Really! I get to spend more time with you guys! I get to write new things and start over!" To no avail. Stink kept right on wailing. "It's not fair! They don't like you! They need to bring you back!" "Stink," I said, wrapping my arms around him. "Have you ever noticed that new gardens are kind of smelly?" "Yeah," he said, through his tears. "What do you think they use for planting?" "I don't know..." he sobbed. "Fertilizer!" Pip chimed him. "That's right," I said. "And what is fertilizer made from?" I went on. A hush fell over the play room. "CRAP!" I proclaimed. All crying stopped. Stink looked up at me with the same expression I probably had when he was nine months old and I had a positive reading on 99 Cent Store pregnancy test. I didn't let the silence linger long. "Did you know crap, despite smelling horrific, turns out to be the best breeding ground ever for flowers?" I could see my kids' little brains churning like the wheel in a Life game. "Guess what our vibrant geraniums got their start in?!"" "Crap!" Pipsqueak squealed. "Guess what the tallest, brightest sunflowers grow in?" "Crap!" Pipsqueak said again. "Guess what Mommy is going to grow from?" I shouted, really feeling the spirit now. "Crap!" Stink said, half smile, half pout. He added, "But you're just saying this story to make me feel better!" Then he slumped on the couch, downing his last taquito. I stroked his hair. "Is it working?" I asked. "Yes. But you are very very tricky." Yup. Mamas know how to grow, and dish out, the crap. What amazing growth experiences have come from your personal fertilizer? Image found here. Comments01/27/2011 15:33
Ah yes...I can totally relate to EGO as that acronym! Leave a Reply |  ArchivesApril 2009 Online DegreesSocial work is a profession for those with a strong desire to help improve people's lives. Earn your masters degree in social work. CategoriesAll 
PASS THE ZOLOFT CategoriesAll ArchivesJuly 2011 |
RSS Feed
