There was a toy train set up in my daughter’s play room. It was large enough for kids to ride on and the track was laid out in a simple wedge shape that took up most of the corner of the room. My daughter wanted to know if she could take everyone for a ride on her train. I had to tell her no. My wife started to object, but I pulled her aside and explained that we were responsible for anything that might happen to these kids and that they all seemed a little too rambunctious to handle playing with this train without one of them getting hurt.
My wife reluctantly agreed. I hated to disappoint my daughter. I knew how much she wanted to show the other kids her train and have them play with her on it, how much she had thought about it in the weeks leading up to the party, and how much I was letting her down. I could see it in her face. But I couldn’t get the idea out of my head of one of those kids putting their hands on the track and the sharp wheels of the train coming along and slicing off their fingers.
I don't yet have kids, but when I do, I think I'll have faith in my kid. I was a capable kid, and I hardly ever hurt myself on stupid things. But other people's kids? No way, I don't have the same faith. I've watched kids just in this neighborhood violently hurt themselves with an inflatable beach ball (no joke). A toy train could mean death to them.
ReplyDeleteDisappointing, yes, but still a good call.
Hey there!
DeleteI'm trying to imagine the possible ways of a kid hurting themselves with a beach ball. The best I can come up with is trying to bounce on it up and down and then failing miserably and falling off onto the pavement. I could totally picture a kid doing that.
I've had many a dream similar to this one. Usually after staying awake half the night pondering people & why I don't fit in & thankful that I don't. It worries me how so few of them are capable of instantly sizing up a situation & predicting the outcome. I don't get how people can be so oblivious & nonchalant about such things as DANGER when it's staring them right in the face.
ReplyDeleteSmall example; at a ballet recital rehearsal when my daughter was just a tiny thing, all the girls were flittering around way to close to the edge of the stage. I was scared to death someone was going to fall six feet down & break their neck. I looked at the other moms that didn't seem alarmed & I knew I had to speak up. So I said rather urgently & loudly "Girls you need to back up from the edge. Somone is going to fall!" The moms & ballet instructors looked at me like I was an idiot & nobody made them back up. So I motioned for my daughter to do what I said & I sat back down. It wasn't ten minutes later that not one but FOUR of them all cuddled together in a little group fell off the edge of the stage. 6 feet down & they landed hard on their heads right at the feet of their moms. Amazing how concerned & fast people can be AFTER the fact. It's even more amazing how proud & good they feel about themselves for comforting & nursing the hurt children that wouldn't have got hurt in the first place if they had really cared.
I don't know... people are just weird. I don't trust or like the majority of them. I'd take that dream as a warning if I were you.... to listen to your gut instincts where your daughter's well-being is concerned. Even once she becomes a young adult. That's the point at which our kids really need protecting, but it's almost like impossible unless you make a heck of a lot of waves. It can be done though.... but that's another long-winded story.
"It worries me how so few of them are capable of instantly sizing up a situation & predicting the outcome."
DeleteI know, although I have my dumb moments too. A few years back I was trying to change the floating mechanism on my upstairs toilet (needless to say, I suck at doing home repairs like that.) There was this one plastic piece I couldn't get out and I figured that if I could just break it off, then I could slide the rest out the hole at the bottom. I couldn't break it off by hand, so I went and got a hammer. At this point you're probably hearing the Looney Tunes theme in the background. Before I did anything, I even had this feeling like, somehow this is a really bad idea. But hey, what could go wrong swinging a hammer around inside of an empty porcelain toilet tank? Well, to make a long story short, I ended up having to replace the entire tank.
But, yeah, the thing with the stage, I definitely would have been quite nervous about that. That's definitely the sort of thing that would perk my ears. I can't believe that no one thought about that, even after you said something.
As for my daughter, she's 16 now and just about to start driver's ed. So yeah, premonitions aplenty.
I totally understand.
DeleteYou're a great dad & you've raised her well. She'll be fine!
Only good dreams..
;)