Last week, a curious thing happened.
My 4 1/2 year old was acting up, not listening to his mom or dad about putting away his toys, or interrupting his mother when she tried to talk, etc.
When dinner time came around, he refused to eat -- even though we had cleared it with him ahead of time what was for dinner (home made breaded fish, rice, some veg.). Apparently, this breaded fish was suspect because it lacked perfect uniformity as brand name ones have in the grocery store and which he was used to at Daycare.
Fair enough. Trying to move fish on a kid is difficult at the best of times. All that was asked that he try it, which was not happening. This further led to a 10 minute attack of scorn upon the cook, the dish and whatever related entity popped into his head.
I then picked up the phone, and said: "That's it. I'm callng the North Pole. I'm telling them what you've been up to and that maybe you should be put on "The Bad List."
The 4 1/2 year old froze, completely astonished. He then got hysterical: "No daddy, no daddy, no daddy!!!"
We'll, then try some of the fish. After some inner conflict he was able to overcome, some fish was tried. A minor miracle.
I wonder how long this "Bad List" thing will last.
Reminds me of Ionesco, an absurdist playwright, who said:
“Childhood is the world of miracle and wonder; as if creation rose, bathed in the light, out of the darkness, utterly new and fresh and astonishing. The end of childhood is when things cease to astonish us.”
