Sometimes I think I present a sanitized version of myself via my blogs posts, todays post shows me in a more realistic light!
On
Monday morning I was making a concerted effort to have us all out the
door a little earlier than usual - or on time at least. For some reason
we're always just a few minutes late on Mondays, and on Mondays I'm
responsible for opening up the cashier',s office at work. While I
usually manage to sail in right on the dot of 8.30am, I feel the
passive aggressive disapproval that is shot in my direction. The fact
that I never leave on time, that I'm early every other day of the week,
that I have a shorter lunch break to cover the passive aggressives who
sneak an extra 5 minutes on to their lunch break, is not taken into
account. On Monday mornings I feel the barbs of thought.
Anyway,
at home on Monday morning I'd bustled around the kitchen and made
everyone's lunch - rolls for the teens, leftovers to be reheated for me
- and left them on the bench to be collected and put in bags as they
went past on the way to the front door.
As I was gathering my bag and
keys Davey looked at my tupperware container on the bench and
tentatively asked if that was his lunch. "Um, no. That's mine" I
replied, puzzled as to why he'd bother asking, as leftovers needing
reheating are not something suitable for his lunchbox. Puzzlement
didn't slow me down one little bit as I kept on track of getting out of
the house and thus to work. At the front door I could hear Davey
vigorously shaking his money box in his bedroom. "What are you doing Davey? We have to go!" I called with some impatience.
Davey duly appeared, we all piled into the car and headed off to school.
At lunch time, Em who attends the school I work at, came and showed me
two bread rolls. "How come I have two rolls today Mum?" "Did you pick
up Davey's as well?" I asked. "No, they're both mine - they both have
peanut butter and jam." As Davey opts for just peanut butter, the only
explanation for Em having two rolls was that one had remained in her
bag uneaten and had just surfaced and gained her lunch time attention.
I didn't think too much more about it.
That afternoon Davey said "Oh, by the way, you forgot to make me a
lunch today!" He said in an amused tone, rather than accusatory, yet I
still don't think he expected my laughter. I explained about Em and
her two rolls and he understood that it was his elder sister's thievery
rather than my neglect which left him lunchless.
"Did you take money from you money box to buy lunch?" I asked, the
reasons for his actions that morning dawning on me. Davey nodded and
smiled. "Oh. Was I stressing too much for you to tell me there was a
lunch problem?" I asked. "Ohhh, you were alright Mum, but I knew it
would be simpler if I just dealt with it myself" was Davey's soothing
reply.
I smiled wryly and hugged my boy. He was right. I would have flapped
about saying I'd made his lunch, I didn't know where it was, he must
have already put it in his bag, I had left it on the bench, did I have
to do everything?, had he checked with Em? did she have it?, I didn't
have time for this, stressy yada, stressy yada, stressy yada.
Davey going to his money box really was the simplest solution. I was
quite happy to reimburse him the money, and while I hate to think there
are times I'm not a cool, calm, collected Mum, I like that Davey came
up with a no fuss solution. I like that he skirted around a difficult
person (me) and maintained peace.
While I have to acknowledge how blinkered and unreasonable I can be
when I'm stressed, even over minor things, I like how Davey's maturing
and dealing with stuff. Em's always been able to do this, for Davey,
it's only happening with maturity.
Oh and on the subject of Em, did she acknowledge she'd
accidentally taken Davey's lunch as well as hers? Um, no. Despite the
damning evidence, Em still maintains her innocence, which Davey & I
find hilarious!
Mixed feelings, isn't it? Happiness that Davey's maturing enough to deal with this on his own, embarrassment that you may have been too stressed to realize it was a problem when it happened.
Posted by: Daisy | August 05, 2009 at 04:33 PM
I do stuff like that all the time. Then I feel bad when they don't confront me, like, am I THAT scary?
Probably.
Posted by: Maureen at IslandRoar | August 05, 2009 at 06:47 PM
Are you sure you didn't accidentally make two peanut butter and jam rolls instead of one plain peanut butter and one with jam??
Poor Em is probably innocent!
Posted by: K | August 06, 2009 at 12:42 AM
Em innocent? Nah. There was definitely only one jam and peanut butter roll - and I scraped the jam jar clean to supply it!
And my teens have added this incident to their list of things to tease Mum about. It's makes me feel a little better to know they find my stress amusing!
Posted by: Ali | August 06, 2009 at 03:28 AM