This Girl is in for a Ride

I gave her fair warning.

This girl is in for a ride. My precocious six year-old daughter, Sophia, is surely one of my greatest creative achievements — and, simultaneously, elicits the most exasperated, burned-out version of me. I suppose her younger two-year-old brother, another one of my great creative feats, has something to do with my daily angsty annoyance. But my son Sutton is far more compliant. I’m sure that will change.

The two of them were recently playing in large red buckets in the backyard sun, hopping in and out, filling them up with water from the nearby hose, stomping and splashing with gusto. Their grass-stained t-shirts were starting to get more and more wet. But their joyful sounds were the reassurance I needed to focus on completing the online application for backyard ballet lessons for my daughter. It’s pandemic paradise, so everything happens in the backyard.

I noticed that Sophia was occasionally dousing Sutton’s head, despite his repeated and very audible protests. I calmly reminded her to listen to his words — I gave her fair warning.

Before I knew it, I bee-lined to the buckets, scooped up my very own cup of cold water and dumped it over her head. We were both in shock. She burst into tears. I walked away in silence.

I guess we are both in for a ride.